The Secret of the Blazon
Someone slipped poison where it did not belong, and now the whole court eyes its goblets warily. The dose was measured with care — enough not to look like chance, too little to go unpunished. On the Chancellery's list stand Pantelimon the Gardener, Sword-Bearer Dragos, Nichifor the Spy, Margica the Innkeeper and Anica the Miller; one of these names covers a lie. Motives abound — blackmail, a debt of honour, revenge, jealousy and ambition — yet only one moved the guilty hand. A sharp eye is not enough here — it takes an archivist's patience: fit everything together, then pronounce your verdict.
Suspects
He tends the queen's roses and no one's beds of belladonna. The second garden is the more sought-after.
1.73 m
right-handed
green eyes
greying hair
He bears the king's ceremonial sword. At the tourney he has never lost; at dice, always.
1.86 m
right-handed
brown eyes
chestnut hair
Officially, he does not exist. Unofficially, he was seen in three places at once - which is, of course, impossible.
1.74 m
left-handed
dark 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
Her mill grinds grain by day and rumours by night. The flour comes out white; the rumours, always black.
1.63 m
right-handed
brown eyes
blond hair
Locations
the wharf
Moored boats, wet ropes, and goods that prefer to arrive in the fog.
the scriptorium
Slanted desks, ink, and working silence. Here a quill creaks louder than a conscience.
the cathedral crypt
The old kings sleep beneath crested slabs. Now and then, someone disturbs their rest.
the queen's garden
Roses trimmed to a line and paths you may walk only by invitation. At night, the hedge has ears.
the throne room
Gold, purple, and the most closely watched place in the kingdom. In theory.
Objects
the ermine cloak
White fur with black tails - only the royal family may wear it. It has a tear at the hem.
the small wine cask
Arin wine, the good year. The bung was pulled and put back by an unskilled hand.
the map of the realm
The kingdom's borders, drawn with a fresh correction where there should be none.
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.
the guild seal
The stamp that turns any goods into goods "of certified quality." Worth a mine of gold.
Motives
blackmail
Un secret ținut ca funia la gât, strâns exact cât trebuie.
a debt of honour
O făgăduială care cântărește mai greu decât viața.
revenge
O datorie de sânge pe care numai fapta o mai șterge.
jealousy
Otrava care mistuie pe cel ce râvnește ce nu-i al lui.
ambition
Setea de a urca, chiar peste trupuri, spre o treaptă mai înaltă.
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.
- Before the investigator, Sword-Bearer Dragos firmly repeats: "I was at the throne room".
- At the Chancellery, Pantelimon the Gardener maintains: "I handled the guild seal".
- An honest-faced witness saw it plainly: the scriptorium and ambition go together.
- The traces left at the scene show it plainly: the culprit handled the herald's horn.
- An honest-faced witness saw it plainly: the small wine cask and revenge go together.
- In the Chancellery's ledger it stands in black and white: the ermine cloak and blackmail go together.
- The chronicler notes drily: the suspect with blond hair was at the scriptorium, whatever the court may say.
- In the Chancellery's ledger it stands in black and white: the guild seal and a debt of honour go together.
- The gate guard swears: Nichifor the Spy was driven by blackmail.
- An honest-faced witness saw it plainly: Margica the Innkeeper was at the wharf.
- The gate guard swears: Nichifor the Spy was in the place where all is gold and purple.
- A note in the margin of the ledger: if Nichifor the Spy was in the place where all is gold and purple, then Pantelimon the Gardener was at the cathedral crypt.