Looking at all of his companions before speaking, Ayden stands before the council. While normally, he would have preferred to wash the grime and blood off of himself, perhaps here and now, it would lend more credit to his words.
"We have Sheriff, in the form of documents showing Applebottom's purchase of lands surrounding the swamp, as well as documents describing how the swamp was to be drained."
Taking the documents from Chasity, Ayden turned to face the council once more.
"These have been held by Lady Chasity, a holy knight in the service of Torm. I asked her to hold these to carry them, as to ensure that they were as we found them in Applebottom's safe."
Pausing, Ayden tried to recall if the others had mentioned the slain creature's name, but realized that it was not important to their case at the present.
"There was also a creature we faced after Applebottom was taken into custody. It appeared to be a mixture of water and serpent, and in the end, we were forced to slay it to save ourselves. We do not know where this creature came from, but Lady Chasity was able to see that its heart was filled with darkness."
Opening the bag at his side, Ayden began dumping the contents of it onto the council's table.
"This is every stray coin and item that we collected from Applebottom's resident, save a ring I wear on my hand, and a brooch that Andreas has pinned to his cloak. We offer them all to you as proof that we are not the same caliber of men as Applebottom, nor do we wish to be seen as common hired killers. We took no joy in the deaths we caused, and wish to state again that it was in self defense only."
Pausing once more, Ayden looked at Sheriff Trond as he finished.
"You asked us to come here to settle the conflict between Orchard Meadows and the Broken Axe lizardmen clan, and the way I see it, we are only halfway there. I request that the council allow us to journey back into the swamp tomorrow to seek out the lizardmen and tell them of the treachery of the Mayor, as well as to seek out the engineer who still remains at large."