You see no items you'd connect to cultists.
Uthred's sudden snooping does obviously not go unnoticed.
"Do you mind?"
The mayor's words come across as genuine, as far as you can tell.
The mayor parries Artoria's accusations.
"Miss, you hurt my pride with your harsh words.
It has been a long day yesterday and many a person would be uncomfortable waking up before properly rested. I give you my word that my house is locked against intruders by night.
If you still don't believe me, come with me downstairs"
He lets it sink in.
"Yet please do see the circumstances here, it's still night and arranging all manner of things connected to a passing require more time than can be achieved in the early hours."
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Sarephta, still not sure if they mayor is involved or not, decides it might be best to share some information with him and see how he reacts.
"Are you aware there is a cult in your town? These two confessed their involvement with it, and Shel is to be sacrificed by this cult. Have you heard anything about a cult?"
The mayor dismisses Uthred's remark with a handwave and a nod.
@ Sarephta:
He sighs shortly. "While i would not wish to speak of a cult, i can't deny there have been sightings of strangely dressed figures from time to time.
When we organized a search party, we ended up with the search in the now cut cornfield just outside the village or the bogs, and those are particularly tricky grounds, that much our hunters and trappers can confirm."
Your gut says the mayor's not lying, but you get a vague impression he's avoiding (embarrassing?) details.
Sarephta hears a familiar buzzing pass the window.
"Hmm?..Yes, well...as mayor i'm to solve the problems of my village as best i can. Yet returning empty handed is rather, shall we say, out of expectations for my position.
I can manage our day to day problems and tasks, yet when it came to the investigation and being asked 'mayor, what now?', i had no answer to give, there was no trail left to pursue."
By now, you hear outside the sound of a rooster announce the start of the day.
"That time already?", the mayor walks to his wardrobe and takes out something akin to a bathrobe, albeit more like morning wear.
"Please join me for breakfast, we can continue any further discussion you would have downstairs.
Though, with our number, i would need a little help preparing some of it, should you wish for more than simply bread with cheese and sausage and apples."
Artoria & Archimedes hear the buzzing too.
Mayor: "No more than fair. Would the others share your modesty of meal, or will someone be helping me?"
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"It doesn't seem to dawn on you that there's a dead person next to your bed, does it? Or are so incredibly cold-hearted that you simply don't care, mayor?"
Something pops up in Aryn's mind and she moves over to the mayor to check his neck for the puncture wounds she spotted on some of the villagers yesterday. She then does the same with Shel's dead father.
@ Aryn, before you went down for breakfast: "As i said, we can lay him on the bed in the last guest room, and the funeral can be arranged during the day. No need to jump to conclusions."
@ Uthred: "By cut, i should mention that it's pretty much that, we've sown recently, it will be a large patch of soil at the moment."
"Yes, my brother lives with me, although one of his quirks is him preferring a sofa to sleep on, over his own bed. To each their own, i suppose."
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Sarephta helps in preparing some food and serves it to the others.
During a moment when the mayor is not present, she says to her companions, "I do not think the mayor is involved in this. I believe he struggles to understand what is going on, and has not been able to figure it out."
She pauses to think for a minute. "Maybe we would turn up some clues following this list of places to visit that we saw. Perhaps we should also investigate the cornfield."
Sarephta's cooking turns out delicious, much so that the eyes of the mayor look bigger as he eats it.
Uthred finds the sofa with a vague print of something or someone having been on it, as well as a few brown hairs on one side.
The brother is apparently not around at the moment.
...as well as a stray mouse, which looks at Uthred with scared beady eyes.
Uthred sees no distinctive tracks, save for several vague footprints in the mud alongside the wall of the manor.
Following the list of circled buildings, made by missing Kyle, your first stop is the trading post.
While this building bears a sign that proclaims it to be the
town trading post, the lack of business and activity certainly
sets expectations of a poorly stocked store at best.
Upon arrival, you notice a sign hanging from the door.
We are closed at the moment.
Our apologies.
Ignore if leaving trade post be.:
You decide to skip the list, for now, and head to Viorec's house.
To your luck, he opens the door already.
"Come in, i wanted to talk to you, as a matter of fact."
When you are all seated, he puts on some water.
"Tea anyone?"
Regardless of the answer, he makes it anyway.
"I needed to talk to you.
Last night, i saw a couple of people in disguise head north, my guess the mayor's house. Am i right in this?"
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Uthred accepts the tea. Listens to his question and then responds.
"You are correct good sir. We did have...unexpected visitors... last night. Sad to say it met with a bad ending. It appears the three in question were Shel, her mother and her father. It was a clumsy ambush where the father perished sad to say. Your mayor is a sound sleeper as he did not wake up during the fight, nor was his brother around... very curious."
Viorec nods.
"I suppose it's not too surprising the mayor's a sound sleeper, the man's doing things all day as any of us.
Then again he's middle aged, he's not as young as the rest of us."
He nips from his tea. "Anyway, i couldn't sleep properly last night. It could be due to you being here and the last outsider having gone missing."
Viorec shakes his head.
"No, but i could have sworn i saw a light over at the abandoned farmstead. The Chenowitz place, it's called."
He nips more tea.
"The Chenowitz have moved out, misfortune befell them, their harvests failed and they went to try their luck elsewhere. It's been abandoned ever since.
Perhaps you'll find some answers there, catch them red handed during the evening?"
Viorec smiles.
"For the time being, my place is in my parental village.
If the situation would turn too dire however, for my children's safety, i could consider it."
With the lead of Viorec in your pocket, the next place on your list is the weavery.
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This shop is filled with simple clothing, cloth, thread, and yarn; a large loom and spinning wheel take up most of the shop's back area, along with a large cage containing Mushfen silkworms.
Behind the counter, fixing clothing, sits an old crone.
"Hmm, a customer? Let me get up .....*ow*...., she holds her back in support. "There, that's better. How can i help you?"
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"Please, stay seated if that's better for your back," Aryn tells the old woman. "No need to get up."
"My name's Aryn Seavon. My colleagues," Aryn motions at her allies, "and I are Pathfinders, sent to Ravenmoor to collect taxes and find a man by the name of Elias Kyle. He is a tax collector and was sent to Ravenmoor before us, but he's gone missing. How you seen him during his stay in Ravenmoor?"
Detect evil scanner goes off, but contrary to the old woman, one of the silk worms, the one on top wriggling, pings as pretty evil.
"Well good morning to you dear.
Yes, i've seen mister Kyle, briefly. I was taking a walk and he almost bumped into me around a corner, he didn't even say 'oops, sorry'.
Aside from that, it seems he didn't socialize with any of the villagers."