Reginald’s connection lived in one of the shadiest neighborhoods in the city, where plants, lawn decorations, and – surprisingly often – doors had an odd tendency of going missing during the night. This might have been a problem, but luckily, the objects that vanished had an uncanny tendency of showing up as part of the local [Door To Door Salesman]’s “basket of stuff to buy” a day or two later so it all worked out just fine.

As Vee listened to the hat’s “directions” – which were mostly wrong turns followed by sudden remembrances of the right alley to walk down – he couldn’t help but feel that he was being watched. Certainly, every time he looked around he saw nothing, but he couldn’t shake the lingering feeling that someone was staring at him all the same.

[Second Sight] and [Third Sight] failed to detect anything, and Vee wondered if his mind was playing tricks on him. Such things had been known to happen before, after all.

However, though the mysterious observer’s presence grew stronger and stronger as they carried on, it vanished entirely as soon as Reginald announced that they’d reached their destination.

Vee looked at the house. It was a small, slanted thing in desperate need of a fresh coat of paint. Vee tapped Reginald’s brim.

“Are you sure this is the right place? It doesn’t look like much.”

“Yup. This is old Luc’s place alright. Go on up and knock.”

When Vee stepped onto the deck, though, the boards groaned and jiggled beneath his feet like a bowl of jelly. If he’d been even five pounds heavier, he would have fallen right through.

“I…think I’ll wait for you right here,” Alforde said drily.

“Good plan. Think this guy will recognize you, Reginald? You said it’s been a few years since you last saw him, right? Remember, you were just a talking rock back then.”

“It’ll be fine,” Reginald said in haughty voice. “I’m more than just my appearance, you know. People always remember me for my personality.”

That was probably true, but wasn’t necessarily a good thing. As such, Vee was ready for the dagger that burst from the door almost as soon as he knocked. He jumped back, wincing at the sound the deck made, and held up his hands to show that he wasn’t looking for trouble.

“I thought you said this guy was an old friend of yours,” the [Ghost Maestro] hissed as the dagger stabbed again. “Seems like an odd way to greet a pal, doesn’t it? Unless, of course, this is the part where you’re going to remember that you owe him money or something?”

“Of course not!” Reginald said. “It’s nothing like that! I’m shocked that you would accuse me of such a thing.”

“Well, then why’s he trying to skewer me?”

“Luc is maybe a touch paranoid. It’s a class thing. He’s been a [Snoop] for a long time, and it gets to him sometimes. Makes him think people are out to get him.”

Vee yanked the hat off his head and glared into his [Majordomo]’s eyes. “And you didn’t think that was worth mentioning? Really?”

Reginald’s mouth went slack. “My bad, okay? Geez. It’s not like you got hurt or anything. Turn me around to talk to him and I’ll settle this in a heartbeat, Boss.”

Vee did so, and Reginald clear his nonexistent throat. In an extra-friendly voice, Vee’s [Majordomo] called, “Hey, Luc, it’s your old friend, Reginald! Remember me? We used to play horses together out at the kitrekin casino a few years back. Why don’t you put that knife down so we can catch up, eh? It’s been a few years!”

A small, bird-looking man with thick glasses and a weak chin peeked out from the gloom. His gray eyes were narrow with suspicion, and he still had his dagger raised and ready as he stared at Reginald.

“I don’t recognize – wait, Bad Bluff Regi? Is that really you? Last time we were together, you were just a talking rock!”

Feeling much safer now that he was closer to Alforde, who’d unslung Slammy and looked ready to leap into action, Vee grinned as he felt Reginald stiffen.

“Told you so,” the [Dungeon Master] muttered.

“Shut up, Vee. Of course it’s me,” the hat said. “Can’t you tell by my voice?”

Luc lowered his dagger ever so slightly, but his face stayed grim. “Voices are easy to fake. Prove that it’s really you. Tell me something only the real Regi would know.”

The hat hemmed and hawed for a moment, then straightened up and said, “Alright, I’ve got one. Remember that time we lost our entire bankroll in less than an hour because you wouldn’t believe that the [Cardsharp] at our table had [Soulread]? Even though I said we should stop, you just kept right on betting.”

Luc’s face changed immediately, going from wary apprehension to irritation in a heartbeat.

“That’s not what happened at all! You were the one who kept insisting that our luck was bound to turn. What’d you say again? Oh, right! We lost fifteen straight, we’re due a big win!”

“I still think that’s true!” Reginald said. “What are the odds of us losing sixteen in a row? It gets less and less likely each time!”

“That’s…not how probability works,” Alforde interjected helpfully, and Reginald shot the armorsoul a nasty glare.

“It’s how Reginaldian probability works,” the hat said. He turned back to Luc. “And we would have won on that next hand too, if you hadn’t gotten cold feet.”

“We were out of money!”

“Minor detail,” the [Core Spirit] scoffed. “So whaddya think, Luc? Believe it’s me yet?”

The man shrugged and lowered his dagger. “I guess. I can’t think of anyone else I know who has such a tenuous grasp on reality. So what brings you by, Regi?”

“We’re looking for somebody in the city. A [Gold Smith] named Thien. Been trying to track her down for a few weeks and haven’t found anything. It’s almost like she’s just up and disappeared. Any chance you know something?”

Luc twisted his head back and forth suspiciously, as if expecting someone to leap out of the shadows and accost them at any moment. When he next spoke, his voice was a conspiratorial whisper. “Maybe I do, maybe I don’t. Come inside where it’s safe, and we’ll talk. You come in too, Vales.”

Though Vee hadn’t really believed there to be any other option, as Reginald wasn’t exactly the type to get up and go in on his own, but he caught Alforde’s eye all the same and mouthed, This guy seems like something else. Be ready to bail me out if it goes bad, okay?

The armorsoul nodded and flexed his pauldrons. “I’ll be out here if you need me. Just give me a holler, okay?”

A wave of calm flowed through the friends’ bond, and Vee felt much better. Plopping Reginald back onto his head, Vee followed Luc inside.

The [Snoop]’s house was almost scarily clean, and Luc gestured for Vee to sit down on a big, comfy couch. It looked like it’d just been dusted, and though the striped pattern was probably older than Vee, there wasn’t a single stain on it.

“Sorry about earlier,” Luc said. “Lots of troublemakers around here. Just the other week I had to buy my doormat back for six silver fleurs! Can’t you believe that? I tell you, it’s insane. Care for a cup of coffee, Vales? A hot drink does a man good on a cold night like tonight.”

Vee looked over at Reginald, who flashed him a felty grin. Taking that as a hint to say yes, Vee accepted the offer and was surprised to find that despite everything else about him, Luc made a mean cup of coffee. It tasted like hazelnuts and vanilla, along with the perfect amount of cinnamon. He took another hearty sip, and set the mug down on the table.

With the social stuff out of the way, Luc got right down to business. He walked over to the far side of the room and picked up a big folder. “What’d you say the [Gold Smith]’s name was?”

“Thien.”

“Thien…Thien. Oh, right here. Let me just see what I’ve got.”

Vee couldn’t help but sneak a peek at the man’s binder, but to his eyes the pages were all blank. Indeed, it looked like Luc was simply staring at a stack of empty sheets of paper. Oddly, the [Snoop] studied them all arduously, but smiled when he noticed Vee’s confused expression.

“I write all my notes with [Invisible Ink]. It’s a useful skill for someone in my line of work.”

“I can imagine. You got anything on our girl?”

“Well, I can tell you that she’s not the only artisan to go missing lately. So far as I know, there have been at handful of similar disappearances these past few weeks.”

Vee frowned. He dimly remembered Juniper mentioning overhearing something along those lines, but this was the first time he’d heard of more people having gone missing.

“That’s not especially helpful to us. What else have you got?” asked Reginald. “Come on, Luc. I know you’ve got [Eyes and Ears] everywhere. You have to know more than that.”

“I’m afraid not,” Luc sighed. “Or at least, not for free. We’re old friends, Regi, but a man’s gotta eat.”

Vee raised an eyebrow. “How much are you looking for?”

“Two gold fleurs.”

The [Dungeon Master] whistled as he shook his head. His [Bargain Hunter] had procced, and he was certain the asking price was way too high.

“You must like expensive food, Mister Luc. Try again.”

Luc met his gaze and said, “Excuse me? Good information doesn’t come cheap, Vales.”

Vee didn’t blink, but instead leaned forward. The Expectation tightened around his shoulders as he reached into his pocket and drew out a handful of coins. “True as that might be, there are bound to be other sources of information. We’re here now, and surely you’d rather get something for your efforts than nothing, right? How does…let’s see here…nine silvers sound?”

The [Snoop]’s eyes glittered. “Awful. I have my pride and reputation, you know.”

Vee shrugged and put the money back before steepling his fingers. He’d seen his father handle situations like this before, and decided to try bravado. “That’s my best price. If you’re not interested, I’ll go elsewhere. I’m sure Reginald has plenty of other old acquaintances with their ear to the ground. Isn’t that right?”

“Sure is, Boss.”

Vee picked up his hat and stood up. “Well, I guess that settles that then. Sorry for wasting your time, Mister Luc. Have a nice rest of your evening.”

Before he’d even made it three steps though, Luc sighed and held out his hand.

“Fine. I’ll tell you. But only because Regi’s an old friend of mine. Hand over the coins and I’ll fill you in on what I know.”

Vee bit his tongue to keep from smiling.

[Charisma +1]

[You can now earn points in Persuasiveness. Persuasiveness +1!]

Sitting back down, Vee handed over the coins and gestured for the [Snoop] to go ahead.

“Let’s hear it, then.”

Closing his binder, Luc nodded and pocketed the coins.

“Alright, the biggest thing that connects these disappearances together is that the missing people are all good at working metal,” Luc said. “Specifically, they have a knack for fine detail work.”

“How do you know that?”

“Well, in addition to your [Gold Smith], the other missing people are two [Locksmiths], a [Jeweler], and a [Silver Smith].”

Now that was interesting. Vee hadn’t been expecting such a clear connection, but hey, he’d take it. People who were familiar with metalwork and locks, huh? The implications of that were pretty clear.

“Did they have anything else in common? Where were they last seen?”

“With the exception of your girl Thien, the rest of them work near the gate to Eastown, and most of them were seen somewhere around there.”

Reginald’s mouth curled into a tight frown, and Vee knew that his [Majordomo] was thinking the same thing he was.

“Near Eastown gate, huh? Any chance they were close to Angelino’s?”

Sometime later, Vee and Reginald walked out of Luc’s house and back out into the cold. The [Dungeon Master] shivered and waved for his friend to follow them. Seeing the steely glint in Vee’s eyes and getting a bad feeling about it, Alforde asked, “Well? What’d you guys figure out?

When Vee answered, the armorsoul couldn’t help but notice the edge in his voice.

“We’re going to go talk to Sacre. I think that Thien and a couple other people have been roped into whatever he’s up to out in Westown. Since I’ve been curious about that anyways, I figured we might as well kill two birds with one stone by going and asking a few simple questions.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea, Vee?”

“Yeah.”

There was no room to argue. Inwardly, Alforde grimaced and flexed his gauntlets before shifting Slammy to his other pauldron and shaking his helmet.

Crudbuckets. Vee was in one of those moods.

“Got it. I’ve got your back no matter what.”

[Congratulations, you are now a Right Hand Man Level 14!]

[Might +1]

[Faith +1]

“Good. Now come on, it’s cold out here.”

Reginald turned around with a curious expression, and Alforde shrugged. The last time he’d seen the manic glint blazing in his friends eyes, Vee had marched into Tyrion’s study full of blood and vinegar, and the shouting match that followed was why the friends were in Oar’s Crest in the first place.

Hoping that that the night air would cool Vee’s temper as they walked so as to avoid a rhyme of history, Alforde fell into step behind his friend.

His own eyes weren’t particularly sharp when it came to such things, but as they walked, the [Right Hand Man] couldn’t help but notice a faint snake-like shape tightening itself around Vee’s shoulders.

He shivered.

Main Character Sheets:

Vee Vales

Primary Class: Ghost Maestro (Locksmagister University), Level 29

Secondary Class: Dungeon Master (Oar’s Crest), Level 20

Tertiary Class: Guy-Who-Takes-Things-WAY-Too-Far (Self), Level 5

Might: 13

Wit: 32

Faith: 21

Adventurousness: 7

Ambition: 14

Plotting: 19

Charisma: 14 (+1)

Devious Mind: 22

Leadership: 17

Guts: 13

Intimidating Presence: 10

Citizenship: 20

Public Relations: 5

Determination: 2

Persuasiveness: 1 (+1)

Alforde Armorsoul:

Primary Class: Hammer Afficionado (Self), Level 22

Secondary Class: Right-hand man (Vee Vales), Level 14 (+1)

Tertiary Class: Dungeon Champion (Oar’s Crest), Level 14

Additional Class: Glaciernaut (Sacha Silverblade), Level 5

Might: 41 (+1)

Wit: 12

Faith: 27 (+1)

Adventurousness (Bound – Vee Vales): 8

Endurance: 20

Intimidating Presence: 12

Heart of a Champion: 8

Citizenship (Bound – Vee Vales): 8

Vigilance: 6

Vanity: 2

Reginald:

Primary Class: Core Spirit (Unknown), Level ???

--~%@(%[email protected] &% (*$ #&#e !i$$ (#$%#$%#[email protected]!)~--, #[email protected]& ????

Secondary Class: Loudmouth (Self), Level 38

Tertiary Class: Majordomo (Vee Vales), Level 15

Additional Class: Announcer (Vee Vales), Level 8

Might: 1

Wit: 33

Faith: 14

Ambition: 27

Greed: 22

Deceptiveness: 27

Manipulativeness: 37

$#&*[email protected]!!

Loyalty: 46

Patience: 8

[#&%%%@%!#@__--#%]

[email protected]#!! @#[email protected][email protected]#

@#[email protected]%%^

Citizenship (Bound – Vee Vales): 7