The Seal of the Court
A bold theft has shaken the calm of the court, and calm will not return until the truth comes out. The culprit worked cleanly, but not without witnesses — and the witnesses, at last, have begun to talk. The testimonies keep returning to the same names: Sir Bogdan de Fag, Iustin the Mariner, Manole the Jeweller and Margica the Innkeeper. The places named in the testimonies — the north wall, the hunting lodge, the tourney field and the queen's garden — each await their turn under scrutiny. Study the testimonies at your leisure, fit them into the grid, and pronounce your verdict without haste.
From the Chancellery archive
A court seal is a small thing, heavy and dear — exactly the sort of object that fits in a fist and changes a kingdom. When it went missing, the Chancellery did not look for an ordinary thief but for someone who knows what they are holding.
Which is why Manole the Jeweller is among the suspects, the only one of the four who could tell you its weight with his eyes shut. The others are Sir Bogdan de Fag; Iustin the Mariner — the man who can take anything out of the realm by water; and Margica the Innkeeper, at whose door everyone stops before leaving.
The places are unusually open for a theft: the north wall, the hunting lodge, the tourney field and the queen's garden. Three of the four are under open sky, which means more witnesses and, contrary to expectation, a harder dossier: witnesses contradict one another.
Tier II. You have three attempts. Spending them all is worth it only when the grid is complete — a hasty verdict costs fifteen per cent of your score.
Suspects
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 brings goods from ports with unpronounceable names. Half the cargo never appears in the customs records.
1.78 m
left-handed
blue eyes
black hair
He tells gold from gilt at a glance. With people, he admits, it takes him two.
1.69 m
right-handed
brown eyes
brown hair
At the Golden Boar inn, wine and secrets are spilled in equal measure. She never forgets a debt - or a word let slip.
1.61 m
right-handed
dark eyes
chestnut hair
Locations
the north wall
The stretch of wall the patrol skirts when the wind blows. Everyone knows that.
the hunting lodge
The royal cabin in the heart of the forest. Far from the eyes of the court - which is exactly what suits some.
the tourney field
Empty stands outside festival days. An excellent place for meetings that never happened.
the queen's garden
Roses trimmed to a line and paths you may walk only by invitation. At night, the hedge has ears.
Objects
the map of the realm
The kingdom's borders, drawn with a fresh correction where there should be none.
the small wine cask
Arin wine, the good year. The bung was pulled and put back by an unskilled hand.
the ermine cloak
White fur with black tails - only the royal family may wear it. It has a tear at the hem.
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.
| SUSPECTS | LOCATIONS | OBJECTS | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
| MOMENTS | |
||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
| OBJECTS | |
||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
| LOCATIONS | |
||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
Verdict
The culprit always lies; everyone else tells the truth.
- Even the jester says it in earnest: Sir Bogdan de Fag never set foot in the hunting lodge.
- The chronicler notes drily: the herald's horn matches that hour: after matins, whatever the court may say.
- The hounds caught no scent at all: Manole the Jeweller never set foot in the hunting lodge.
- An honest-faced witness saw it plainly: the map of the realm matches that hour: at dawn.
- Two witnesses, upon their crest: the left-handed suspect never set foot in the hunting lodge.
- Every scout reports the same about the culprit: the culprit handled the small wine cask.
- In the Chancellery's ledger it stands in black and white: the north wall and the small wine cask go together.
- However it may seem, at suspects, the queen's garden and the hour "at dawn" take different roads.
- An honest-faced witness saw it plainly: Sir Bogdan de Fag handled the map of the realm.
- A maid whispered it at confession: Manole the Jeweller was there after matins.
- A maid whispered it at confession: the suspect with dark eyes was there at dusk.