The Baron's Interest :
The air in Baron Valerius's solar was still, thick with the scent of old parchment and beeswax. Scribe Valon stood patiently as the Baron finished reviewing the tax ledgers from the Eastern Marches.
"…yields are consistent, if unremarkable," Valon concluded in his dry, reedy voice. "Livestock counts are stable."
The Baron, a man whose grey-streaked hair and lined face spoke of a lifetime of rule, waved a dismissive hand. "Get on with it, Valon. I have no interest in every dirt-farmer's meager existence."
"Ordinarily, no, my Lord. But there is one homestead, the Ironwood family, that is... different." Valon opened his ledger to a specific page. "They've constructed a notable earthen wall, surprisingly well-engineered after a wolf incident. More curiously, they've started a carpentry business. They produce a rocking chair of exceptional comfort and design, which is gaining a small reputation. They've filled several orders at a price that would make your own craftsmen take note."
That caught the Baron's attention. He leaned forward, his sharp eyes glinting in the firelight. "A woodcutter's family producing luxury goods?"
"Precisely, my Lord. The entire family is curiously capable. The mother, Elara, has a gift for herbs. The daughter, Lyra, conducts trade with a merchant's innate sharpness. But the most interesting is the second son, Alistair."
"Alistair," the Baron repeated, tasting the name.
"He is the apparent driving force. He designed the wall. He is the primary craftsman. He speaks with a clarity and confidence that is... unsettling in one so young and of his station. When I spoke to him, he looked me in the eye and said he 'enjoys building things that last.' There is an intelligence there that does not belong in the Marches."
The Baron steepled his fingers. A creative, intelligent mind in his backwater territory was a rare resource. Such minds could be engines of prosperity, or seeds of rebellion. They needed to be assessed, and then either harnessed or neutralized.
"Falkan has noticed them, I assume?" the Baron asked, a knowing glint in his eye.
"The Lordling's agents were asking questions in Oakhaven the same day I was there," Valon confirmed.
"Then time is of the essence. I will not have a promising asset crushed by that petty leech." The Baron made his decision. "Send a rider. Have him deliver a summons, written and sealed. Not a demand, an... invitation. The Ironwood family is to present themselves at Stonekeep in one week's time. I wish to meet this creative son and see these remarkable chairs for myself."
Valon bowed. "At once, my Lord."
As the Scribe left, the Baron looked out his window towards the dark line of the Eastern Marches. *An Ironwood family.* He wondered what metal they were truly made of.
The Summons :
The Baron's rider arrived at the Ironwood homestead two days later. The man was polished and impersonal, a living instrument of power clad in the Baron's colors. He handed the sealed scroll to Kaelen without a word, then turned and left, his mission complete.
The family gathered around the rough-hewn kitchen table, the unopened scroll lying between them like a live coal. The comfortable warmth of the hearth felt suddenly stifling.
"It's the Baron's seal," Lyra whispered, her face pale. All their plans for dealing with Falkan suddenly felt like child's play.
Alistair felt a chill that had nothing to do with the weather. This changed everything. Falkan was a snake they could outmaneuver. The Baron was the hawk that could sweep down from the sky and end them without a second thought.
"Open it, Father," Alistair said, his own voice quiet but steady.
Kaelen broke the seal with a thick thumb, his hands calloused and strong, yet now seeming fragile. He read the elegant script aloud, his voice growing more strained with each word. It was phrased as an invitation, but everyone in the room heard the unspoken command. They were to appear before the Baron in five days' time.
A heavy silence fell over the room, broken only by the frantic beating of their hearts. It was in this silence that the System delivered its verdict, the words appearing in Alistair's mind with cold, stark clarity.
```
[Quest: 'The Baron's Gaze' - Updated!]
[Scenario Shift: You have attracted the direct attention of the Regional Authority, Baron Valerius.]
[New Primary Quest: 'Audi et Alteram Partem' (Hear the Other Side)]
[Objective: Navigate the audience with Baron Valerius. Impress him with your value without revealing your secrets. Survive his scrutiny.]
[Success Reward: Baron's Favor (Unlocks new opportunities, provides protection from Lordling Falkan), 1000 Sovereign Points.]
[Failure Reward: Exile, Imprisonment, or forced conscription into the Baron's service. Potential exposure of the System.]
```
The stakes were no longer about comfort or even local threats. They were about their very freedom and future.
Alistair looked at his family—his father's grim worry, his mother's fearful eyes, his sister's calculated panic, his brother's confused anxiety. He felt the immense weight of his second chance press down on him. He had wanted to build a comfortable life. Now, he had to build a performance so convincing it would fool a Baron and his entire court.
He met their eyes, one by one, forcing a confidence he didn't feel into his voice. "We have a plan. We stick to our story. We are a hardworking, clever, but perfectly normal family. We are proud of our work, but we know our place." He focused on Lyra. "We bring the finest rocking chair we have, a gift for the Baron's household. We show him its value." He looked at Kaelen. "We are respectful, but we are not cowering. We have done nothing wrong." Finally, his gaze swept over all of them. "We give him no reason to see us as a threat, and every reason to see us as a valuable, peaceful asset to his domain. We are the Ironwood family. And we face this together."
His words were a lifeline. They saw the determination in his eyes, the unyielding strength he projected. The fear didn't vanish, but it was now mixed with a resolute purpose. The thicket of thorns they were building for Falkan wouldn't work on an eagle. For the Baron, they would have to become something else entirely: interesting, valuable, and utterly unthreatening. The most delicate performance of their lives was about to begin.