You turn your attention towards a large wooden chest with the words “LOST + FOUND” painted in bold letters on the front. You imagine quite a few items must get unintentionally abandoned in a place such as the Dread Dragon Inn, especially when Dragonfire Mead is on tap. Nearby, a young half-elf in wizard’s robes is idly tossing his staff back and forth between his hands.
You approach the half-elf to strike up a conversation. As you move in, he quickly catches the staff in his left hand and points it towards you.
“Whoa there, friend, are you trying to start something?”
The young mage tries to sound firm, but you notice his voice crackling in panic. You assure him you mean no harm, and he relaxes. The half-elf has delicate and boyish features, his face smooth and unlined with a small nose and wide eyes that shine with intelligence. He wears loose, flowing robes of various colors and patterns along with a green hat.
“A wizard should know better than to sneak up on someone like that. You’re lucky I didn’t banish you to another realm! Don’t let my looks fool you, I’m one of the most powerful wizards in all of Estrea. Ianstaer’s my name, I’m sure you’ve heard of me. Well, any wizard worth their salt has, anyway – I’m quite the prodigy.
Auberon? Yeah, I can’t believe it. He was my mentor, of sorts. He looked after a lot of us younger adventurers who showed good potential. I had hoped to get a letter of recommendation from him so I could join the Starlight Sentinels, the coolest adventuring guild around, but… he thought I wasn’t ready. I get it, though, it’s hard for the older generations to make way for us up and coming heroes. What scares me is that I think maybe he was going to give me that recommendation, that it’s the reason he invited me here tonight, and now because of some short-sighted fool, he’s left this realm forever!
Don’t worry about me though, I’m tough, and I’ve already gotten lots of invitations to join other guilds. It would be nice to find out who did this, though, to find out who poisoned Auberon. I think Auberon must have had some dirt on someone, and that’s why he was murdered. It’s just a rumor, but I heard he was going to come forward to challenge Federic the Fool’s outlandish exaggerations. It’s not like anyone believes Federic’s fantastical stories anyway, but if Auberon had actual proof? Let’s just say those perfect shiny teeth would quickly lose their charm.”
