"Maybe I can. We have a crime scene here. Let's keep everyone away from it, to preserve any tracks and clues."
Leaving Lillin to Father Brucian, the quartet heads back to where they found her. The blood has already crusted over and started to flake like cracked earth.
Lars takes several moments to examine the area, moving around to study the area from different perspectives. Evergreen lingers heavily on the dense air.
Lars moves around the scene, studying it from various angles before heading into the copse of trees. Following broken branches and disturbed plant debris, he exits the copse from the north. from there, he's unable to pick up the trail.
"Hm, strange. Well, this killer used a knife. I don't think it was a ghoul, because ghouls have claws which are a lot more dangerous than your typical dagger."
"Which may mean that there are two sets of villains operating in this town, possibly independent of one another."
Or could they be linked? I mean, I've heard about cultists of Urgathoa, back ...at home. Maybe someone works with ghouls, to provide them with a meal? Or it could have to prove his devotion to whatever dark, mad god, before he becomes a ghoul himself? The thought is frightening...
"No point panicking yet. We'll have plenty of reason to do so soon enough. Let's ask the victim. Maybe that will shine some light on this. And...my apologies. But I can't pick up the trail."
Don't blame yourself, Lars. It isn't easy, I guess. I have no knowledge in your wilderness skills, I even got lost in a library once or twice.
It's obvious Atsushia does what she can to ease the things for Lars
Entering the church, the group sees Henrietta, Lillin's mother, attending to her in addition to Shaman Brucian. Several stray hairs have loosened themselves from her bun. Looking up with tear stained cheeks, "You're the ones that found her? Thank you so much! I don't want to think what would have happened if you weren't there."
So do yourself a favor and don't think about it. We were there, and we were able to save your daughter, that's all that matters. Of course it would have been better to stop the one who attacked Henrietta.Maybe later we could ask her if she has any clue about his or her identity.
Morthak nods.
"Whoever did this was a coward, and fled the moment he was discovered."
Ok, so it looks like that's the only commentary here.
Lillin starts to come to when she hears the commotion. Trying to sit upright, she stops and winces at the pain. Her mother places her arm on her back to assist her and to prevent any sudden motions.
"Th-thank you for doing what you did. I wouldn't be here otherwise." She pauses to cough a bit, an uncomfortable sound of pain resonating off the stone walls of the church. "All I remember is a dark figure leaping out of the shadows above me. I remember screaming, and then a sharp pain as it struck with a hideous looking dagger. I-I must have been to frightened to think of anything else. That's all I recall. Fear, panic, and pain."
"You said 'hideous-looking dagger.' What makes you say that? Was it just that he was attacking you with it, or was there something strange about it?"
Atsushia listens too, her small face now tenser, and might asks a few question when Morthak has his own answers
Might be a special dagger used in certain cults... or something else. I've heard of magical weapons able to take control of people's mind. Could it be a sentient, evil artefact?
Lars listened intently. This was their only clue to go off of.
"Could you describe this dagger?"
"Um - I can't say for sure. It just curved like a talon or fang."
A reminder that Luc continues to recite the following occasionally:
Seventh doth suns of son the time rise, to of
lnajira fortunes his make will reverse, dooming
The over shining sky the of light the dead, shall
eternity an to knave the send cries.
the dreaded with live to all curse.
to all turning fail and gutter red.
"knave".. isn't it an old word for "knife"? Could it be the dagger?
Atsushia ponders the information, and looks at Luc
Maybe if you could be more precise in your description...
Maybe Luc would recognise the "knave". Or maybe-let's hope I'm wrong...-learning you have survived, the killer would attack you again soon, fearing you could identify him
Unfortunately Luc doesn't appear to be cognizant of Atsushia's focused gaze.
So, what do we do now? Should we try to find our murderer? Investigate the place where he last attacked, hoping to find some clues?Or keep an eye on this poor girl, hoping he doesn't attack her again? Maybe we should get a dog, which could follow some tracks better than us, hopefully...
"Well, I'm not sure. We know now that the licorice killer is probably not a ghoul. After all, why would he use a dagger when his claws would be more effective? And ghouls are not known to travel above ground in daylight."
"We could canvass the town. There can't be that many people here. We know precisely when the attack happened, so we could try to see if anyone can't confirm their whereabouts. Assuming the killer was from the village, that is."
"I've been told that I'm not the most charming person though. Maybe someone else should do the talking."
Do you know someone who could sell you a trained dog? A hunting dog? It might sound a stupid idea, it might even be a stupid idea, but I don't have anything else to offer, so if you have better ideas of your own don't be afraid to share!