The Scheming of the Court
A decree bearing a lying seal has left the Chancellery, and its parchment has already done damage. The forgery is skilled: only an eye trained on the archives found its flaw. The testimonies keep returning to the same names: Duchess Amara de Corvin, Mother Evghenia, Grigore the Cupbearer and Filip the Steward. On the inquiry's table, like pieces in a game, lie the signet ring, the amber necklace, the ciphered letter and the herald's horn. Open the grid, weigh every clue, and pronounce your verdict: the Chancellery awaits only your signature.
Suspects
Widowed three times, heir on each occasion. Her smile has buried more nobles than the plague.
1.68 m
right-handed
dark eyes
black hair
She runs the abbey with an iron hand and a golden pen. The register of donations has pages she shows no one.
1.60 m
right-handed
dark eyes
black hair
He tastes the king's wine before anyone else. A trade with a short future, he says, but a rich past.
1.70 m
right-handed
brown eyes
chestnut hair
He counts the crown's silver every evening. On some evenings the count comes out different - and he says nothing.
1.79 m
right-handed
grey eyes
chestnut hair
Locations
the old dungeon
Cells abandoned since the new dungeon was built. "Abandoned" is one way of putting it.
the mill by the river
The wheel turns day and night. Its noise drowns out any conversation - which is why some are held here.
the merchant's house
Carpets brought from overseas and a desk with more secret drawers than drawers.
the tourney field
Empty stands outside festival days. An excellent place for meetings that never happened.
Objects
the signet ring
The crest has been filed away almost completely. Almost.
the amber necklace
Beads of golden resin strung on a silk thread. The thread is broken and hastily reknotted.
the ciphered letter
Orderly rows of meaningless signs. The ink is costly, the paper costlier, the sender - unknown.
the herald's horn
It sounds the muster, the alarm, or the retreat. Whoever holds it can start a whole panic with a single breath.
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 gate guard swears: the mill by the river matches that hour: at dusk.
- In the Chancellery's ledger it stands in black and white: Mother Evghenia was there at noon.
- The chronicler notes drily: Grigore the Cupbearer was there at dawn, whatever the court may say.
- The traces left at the scene show it plainly: the culprit was at the mill by the river.
- The hounds caught no scent at all: the tallest suspect never set foot in the tourney field.
- The traces left at the scene show it plainly: the culprit handled the herald's horn.
- The chronicler notes drily: Grigore the Cupbearer was at the merchant's house, whatever the court may say.
- A maid whispered it at confession: Mother Evghenia handled the signet ring.
- A maid whispered it at confession: Filip the Steward handled the amber necklace.