The Riddle of the Feast
A decree bearing a lying seal has left the Chancellery, and its parchment has already done damage. Whoever drew it up knew the Chancellery's ways by heart — and that is precisely what betrays them. The testimonies keep returning to the same names: Safta the Herbwife, Sir Bogdan de Fag, Luca the Squire and Tintar the Jester. Among the things spoken of in whispers are the vial of belladonna, the guild seal, the hunting crossbow and the small wine cask. The threads were tangled on purpose: investigate, weigh every word, and pronounce your verdict only when the grid leaves no room for doubt.
From the Chancellery archive
The four suspects in this dossier share something the Chancellery noted at the outset: not one of them works for himself. Luca the Squire serves a knight. Tintar the Jester serves a court. Safta the Herbwife serves whoever pays. Sir Bogdan de Fag serves the crown.
In a case of forgery that matters more than it seems. Whoever serves another can commit a deed without gaining anything by it — and then motive, the handle an investigation usually grips, is of no use at all. Only the grid is left.
The places are the four edges of ordinary life: the watchtower, the wharf, the merchant's house and the great stable. The objects — a vial of belladonna, the guild seal, a hunting crossbow and a small wine cask — appear to have nothing to do with one another, and that is precisely the difficulty.
Tier III. There are testimonies on file, so one of them is false. Find it and you have found everything.
Suspects
She gathers herbs at hours when honest folk sleep. The herbs, she says, speak then.
1.58 m
right-handed
green eyes
greying hair
He pawned his armour to pay his tavern debts. Honour, he says, does not rust.
1.85 m
right-handed
blue eyes
brown hair
He polishes the knight's armour and dreams of a sword of his own. For a coat of arms he would do almost anything.
1.72 m
right-handed
green eyes
brown hair
The only man in the kingdom who may tell the king the truth - provided he makes it sound like a joke.
1.56 m
right-handed
green eyes
red hair
Locations
the watchtower
The highest point of the fortress. From here you see everything - and from below, everyone sees who climbs up.
the wharf
Moored boats, wet ropes, and goods that prefer to arrive in the fog.
the merchant's house
Carpets brought from overseas and a desk with more secret drawers than drawers.
the great stable
It smells of hay and hurried departures. Horses give no testimony.
Objects
the vial of belladonna
A small flask, a wax stopper, a label written with care. Three-quarters empty.
the guild seal
The stamp that turns any goods into goods "of certified quality." Worth a mine of gold.
the hunting crossbow
Light, accurate, with a walnut stock. Exactly one bolt is missing from the quiver.
the small wine cask
Arin wine, the good year. The bung was pulled and put back by an unskilled hand.
Moments
at dawn
When the citadel is barely waking and the guards still doze.
after matins
The hour after the morning service, when the abbey empties.
at noon
Midday, with bustle in the markets and silence in the alcoves.
at dusk
When the shadows lengthen and the lanterns are not yet lit.
Open the Grid (below) to solve the case, with the testimonies at hand.
Touch a cell: blank → ✗ (excluded) → ✓ (certain) → blank. Each pair of categories meets exactly once.
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Verdict
The culprit always lies; everyone else tells the truth.
- The tracks in the dust do not lie: the small wine cask matches that hour: at dusk.
- An honest-faced witness saw it plainly: the suspect with red hair was in the place from which you see everything.
- By the order of the hours, first comes the suspect with red hair, then Sir Bogdan de Fag.
- Tintar the Jester declares under oath: "I was there after matins".
- The gate guard swears: the great stable and the vial of belladonna go together.
- The healer says it with a raised finger: if the suspect with red hair was there after matins, then Luca the Squire handled the hunting crossbow.
- The tracks in the dust do not lie: the wharf and the hunting crossbow go together.
- The chronicler notes drily: the great stable matches that hour: at dawn, whatever the court may say.
- The traces left at the scene show it plainly: the culprit was there at dawn.