M.A.G.U.S. - The Melford Murder

Introduction

The adventurers finished their business with Ulayah, then rode to Melford, intent on carrying on to send word to their employer. They found the once peaceful village in disarray. The innkeeper had been murdered!

A new adventurer has joined the party: Athosian, the half-elf thief. She practiced the game mechanics by impressing the farm workers with her archery skills, leaving them befuddled and a bit poorer, having taken the more expensive pieces of weaponry taken from the bandits.

Investigation

The incredibly incompetent town guardsmen went to great lengths to convince the party to investigate the murder. All those present in the tavern the other night were questioned, but to no avail. Of course, they didn't leave town, and could be questioned again.

The innkeeper's body had been found that morning in the stables, so that's where the investigation started. A couple of things were clear right away: tracks of the victim and a larger man led into the stables, but only the latter came out. The adventurers then wished to see the corpse, waiting in the local temple to be buried. The body bore a large stab wound in the back, probably made by unskilled hands wielding a shortsword.

While the other adventurers talked to the priests and guardsmen, the thief walked into the temple, intent on taking anything valuable. A silver candelabrum was left on the altar, which she managed to steal and hide from a pair of nosy old women arriving for prayer.

The party then returned to the inn, and questioned the sister of the innkeeper, Lena. They also snooped around in the rooms of the innkeeper. They found a lot of suspicious evidence: a shortsword hidden in a locker; shoes muddy both on the insides and the outsides; and a marriage certificate linking the innkeeper to an unknown woman who was never mentioned by anybody. They suspected Lena, who had allegedly spent the entire evening in the tavern, serving customers, except for a brief period she spent in the cellar, arguing with the local beekeper about raised prices. The adventurers caught scent and questioned the beekeeper, Magdalene. Several times. In fact, they kept doing roundtrips between the inn and the beekeeper's. Both women played along, and endured the questioning, which was sometimes personal and even aggressive.

Once they had settled on a theory, the adventurers lured both women to the inn's cellar, and confronted them. Shamil's supreme oratory was augmented by an illusion conjured by Armatio. Lena broke down and confessed; Magdalene spoke without thinking, then tried to escape.

Conclusion

The town guard took custody of the two women, while the adventurers celebrated their successful detective work.