Neramo’s Dwemer fetish can always be counted on for good times.

Nice job showing us Crafty Lerisa, along with some of her crafty tricks.

So, we learn the nature of the heist Kaleen has planned now. Seryn will be the point girl, with appropriate help from Neramo, Lerisa and Jakarn. Having Isobel sit this one out go look for a gift for Aurelia is a good idea.

Success! Looks like Kaleen’s given Headman Bhosek a boatload of problems and she now has an adequate crew for the Spearhead – next stop Betnikh.

Victory! The various personalities are well represented here, love it!

I never noticed if the two courtyard ladies made it to the ship. How funny. I will pay more attention next time!

Good idea for Isobel to sit out the activities that would not be becoming to a knight. I hope she likes Betnikh. More beach!

Previously: A start has been made along the path to acquiring Hunding's.

@Acadian I was debating Seryn taking Isobel along, rather than leaving her with Jakarn.

@Grits I'm not sure if it's them, but there are a few extra passengers.

-----

Betnikh and Daggerfall

Betnikh was an island, about the same size as Stros M'kai, but greener, damper, and quite a bit cooler. The Orcs living there, (and it seemed it was all Orcs, and anyone else was just visiting), built crescent-shaped houses I hadn't seen anywhere else. Their tents were smaller versions of the same shape, and we saw several of those being used as temporary structures while more of the larger ones were built. A small town had grown up around Stonetooth Fortress, which lived up to its name by being the only fully stone building.

There were quite a few older ruins in a totally different architecture that I think was Ayleid, or maybe Aldmeri. I'm not a scholar of architecture, so it's just a guess. The Orcs had taken the island from the Bretons centuries ago, and there wasn't a lot of Breton influence remaining. Some of the old graveyards suggested Breton style in the crypts and mausoleums, but even tourists like us don't linger long in those.

I couldn't find any presence of the guilds, although most of the other amenities were there - a bank, stables, traders and a tavern. You couldn't do daily crafting writs here, either.

We found the wayshrines, just in case we ever wanted to return, and then went back to our routine of crafting, guild dailies etc at Elden Root.

---

"One of the Undaunted was telling me that they have other Enclaves at Wayrest, and Mournhold. The other guilds are there too, and crafting writs are available in lots more places," Izzie began.

"We're supposed to be establishing our credentials as good potential citizens of the Covenant so we can buy Hunding's, so shouldn't we be doing our dailies in Wayrest?" she asked.

"It's the same guilds, whichever alliance's capital we go to, so I don't think that matters, but we should probably be doing more non-guild things in between. Maybe we should just pick up any side-quests that are offered whenever we're in the Covenant territory anyway." That was my take on it.

"The guilds do send us all over the map, so that makes good sense," she conceded. "And we've often found lost items to return in the delves, or done other quests for people in the dungeons."

---

Bolgrul sent us back to Ilessan tower the next day, so I decided to do my crafting in Daggerfall, instead of Elden Root. It was a long way between the crafting stations and the quartermasters there, and I was hoping they'd be closer in Daggerfall.

I noticed a dog following me around as I did them, and stopped to find out what it wanted. It led me to a corpse lying in the river, and I was attacked when I picked up a note lying next to it. I left the assassin's corpse with the other, and called up Izzie, to show her the note.

It looked like a shopping list, not something that anyone would get killed over, but the items on it were strange. I decided we should talk to the vendors, and see if the items were anything special.

The grocer told me that 'three blood oranges' told him we'd found Roy, and this was all about the King's intelligence network. He'd rather not get involved. The florist told us that 'black roses with thorns' meant dark magic was involved somehow. The tailor added that the 'cloak with a crescent moon' pointed at house Casimir, the king of Daggerfall. We should speak to Captain Aresin of the King's Guard about the note. We'd find him up near the castle.

We'd apparently been followed, as another assassin waylaid us on our way up the castle steps. Just one, so no much of a problem, but it all pointed to a larger group being involved somehow. Captain Aresin knew the code Roy had used in his 'shopping list', Added up, it meant that someone intended to use dark magic to assassinate King Casimir. He sent us the the tavern, to talk to an Orc agent there.

Grenna gra-Kush was standing by the fire in the downstairs room, where she had a good view of the people coming and going. She'd seen of the Bloodthorns go upstairs, but he'd know her if she followed. Could we go up and try and get him to talk? As strangers, maybe we wouldn't arouse his suspicion.

Yes, but would he talk to a stranger? It turned out that he'd attack a stranger - as soon as we stepped onto the next floor. We found another man up there, cowering in a corner. Leveque had been hired by Martine Lenneaux to get hold of some plans of the tunnels beneath the castle, and it looked like Martine had decided to eliminate him, instead of paying.

We went back down to Grenna, who suggested we search Martine's manor, just next door to the tavern, and see what we could find. "Take any evidence direct to Captain Aresin; there's no time to waste."

The door wasn't locked, but we ran into guards on the upper floor, as well as Martine himself. There was a note on a desk about assassins hiding in crates in a ship in the harbour, ready to move when the time was right. We took the note straight to Aresin, up by the castle.

By this time, we'd already killed at least four of the Bloodthorns, so when he asked us to go search the ships, we agreed. We didn't want to be the Bloodthorns' loose end. And we hit pay dirt on the first ship, when an assassin popped out of a crate we opened. She sneered that we were too late, and Verrik (whoever that was) was already on his way to kill the king.

Joining up with Captain Aresin on the way, we rushed to the main door of the castle and entered. King Casimir saw us arrive, at the same time as assassins appeared from the basement. He ran upstairs, hoping the fight would stay on the main floor.

We followed, as I suspected that these people had been sent to drive the King to the real assassin, and I wasn't wrong. Isobel put herself between Verrik and the King, while I faced Verrik directly. Of course he attacked me, and I had to block, but that let Isobel thrust her sword into his back. Aresin came panting up the stairs, having cleaned up the rest with the aid of the palace guards.

King Casimir apologised to Aresin for not believing his warnings, and asked him to give Isobel and myself all possible assistance against the Bloodthorn.

Did we just get volunteered for another quest? At least we got a reward for this one.

---

"Remind me to avoid stray dogs in future, Izzie. I was not expecting all that."

"Well, if we were going to do an unplanned quest, at least this one's going to count a lot towards getting Hunding's. You can't do much better than saving the life of the King."

I'm not surprised that the two ladies didn't linger in Betnikh.

Isobel makes a good point about the Undaunted sending them all over for good exposure and experience, but she is an Undaunted Fangirl, after all. Daggerfall is probably an even better idea.

Paydirt! An important Covenant quest completed! And one that was appropriately knightly for Dame Isobel. She's right that such a feat should help pave the way into the Hunding's house.