The Sign of the Blazon
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. On the Chancellery's list stand Iustin the Mariner, Sir Bogdan de Fag, Castellan Ursu and Filip the Steward; one of these names covers a lie. Rumor walks the deed through every corner: the guild forge, the old chapel, the tourney field and the queen's garden. Open the grid, weigh every clue, and pronounce your verdict: the Chancellery awaits only your signature.
Suspects
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 pawned his armour to pay his tavern debts. Honour, he says, does not rust.
1.85 m
right-handed
blue eyes
brown hair
He keeps the fortress dungeon and the tally of those who leave other than they entered.
1.90 m
right-handed
dark eyes
black 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 guild forge
Anvils, tongs, and a fire that never goes out. Many small metal things vanish here.
the old chapel
Candles, incense, and a silence in which every footstep echoes like a confession.
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 royal seal
Whoever holds it can seal any decree. Which is why it should not be wandering the kingdom.
the customs scales
Copper pans, sealed weights. One of the weights rings hollow.
the ledger of accounts
Neat columns of figures, with one page torn out exactly at mid-month.
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 gate guard swears: the queen's garden and the small wine cask go together.
- In the Chancellery's ledger it stands in black and white: Filip the Steward handled the small wine cask.
- The healer says it with a raised finger: if Sir Bogdan de Fag handled the royal seal, then Sir Bogdan de Fag was at the guild forge.
- An honest-faced witness saw it plainly: the ledger of accounts matches that hour: after matins.
- Every scout reports the same about the culprit: the culprit handled the ledger of accounts.
- The chronicler notes drily: Castellan Ursu was there at dawn, whatever the court may say.
- Two witnesses, upon their crest: the suspect with brown hair never touched the customs scales.
- The tracks in the dust do not lie: the old chapel matches that hour: after matins.
- Whatever the market gossips: Sir Bogdan de Fag never set foot in the old chapel.
- The chronicler notes drily: the small wine cask matches that hour: at dusk, whatever the court may say.