Ticinum Delagacy:
"Legatus Avitus was stabbed through the back. He was found slumped over here at his desk," the praefectus motions to the desk once again. "The wound was likely made by a long, serrated dagger. Whoever did this managed to find his way into the embassy without any of the guards noticing or setting off any of the building's magical defenses, which have always been adequate before."
"Legatus Avitus had requested the Emperor send a Magus to inspect the embassy to see if more protections were needed," Scriba Amphion adds. "I helped him write the letter himself and had it sent off just last month. The Emperor hasn't replied yet."
"Assuming he got it," Casca says.
"I told the courier to come back here and inform Legatus Avitus, personally, once it was delivered. He returned here from Ticinum a week and a half later and ensured the legatus it had been hand delivered."
Praefectus Casca turns back to Falen. "Regardless, the assassin, and I do believe the killer was a hired assassin, got in, killed the legatus, and got out without being seen by anyone. If you feel you must give the letter to a family member instead of Scriba Amphion, you might have to take to to Ticinum. I don't believe the legatus had any family here."
"There is one," the scribes notes. "Lady Oppia Nazaria. She is a distant cousin of his and lives the Temple District. They had a chilly relationship."
"Very well," Praefectus Casca says. "You may deliver it to her, if your prefer. Or Scriba Amphion can take it and see that it is delivered to legatus's widow in Ticinum."
Praefectus Casca sits back in his chair. "The guards in this city are in a state of chaos right now. New City is a mess. Old City isn't much better. Rumor is that the Regulars are spread thin and fraying under the strain. I've never heard of this 'Vonner' fellow you speak of, but he sounds like a typical corrupt Regular and Bluffside has plenty of those even though The Five would have you think their guards are all shining examples of goodness and grace. Bah! No city this size is free from corruption."
"Which is why the guards that protect this embassy are brought in from Ticinum," the scribe adds. "Not every embassy in the city uses their own guards or can afford too."
"That is how mercenaries like the Rising Swords worm their way into cities. I doubt their are any of them are working in Bluffside as guards. You can always see them coming. They rarely hide their allegiance during a fight, but they will skulk around the fringes of society looking for work. I would suspect them of the Legatus Avitus's death if he wasn't completely under their thumb. Whoever these Arreptitii are, they could have killed him or their master. The documents on his desk are vague and covered in blood."
He pauses. "Vonner could be in their pocket. Or he could just be a monster of a man. You could go to the Bluffside Barracks here in Old City and report him or go to the Tribunal and issue a formal request for justice."
"That will take longer and the Regulars won't like that you went outside their power structure," the scribe adds.
"Yes, yes. At the very least, find a man named Lord Commander Reginald Oakfirst. He is the supreme commander of the Regulars and the Bluffside Elite. I can vouch that he is a good man and doesn't tolerate corruption. Best to look for him at the Tribunal."
