Chapter 32 - The Gryphon Countess

General Summary

Having lost their bouts at the tournament makes the companions want to take to the road. But they are bringing Erich and Johann, who really want to stay and see the rest of the tournament. There is a particular jousting bout, featuring Ott the Shield and Albrecht the Insane that has the attendees in an uproar. Ingrid ponders whether her decision to not enter the lists was the right one, but in the end, she thinks better of it. She and the rest join Erich and Johann in the stands, but as they watch Ott defeat Albrecht, they are approached by a couple of the landgrave's men, who are leading Vesogoth, in chains. Apparently, the man was caught trying to lift the purse of Cristin the Sentinel, who bested him in the archery competition. The landgrave's men say that Dmitrei really ought to be more careful about who he takes into his service, especially as a squire. The knight is incensed, apologizes for his erstwhile servitor, and says he deserves any punishment coming to him, but begs that he not be branded before being exiled. The men ask what he would have them do instead - hang the culprit? Eventually, Dmitrei acquiesces, and the cutpurse is led away in infamy.
Looking for some sort of redemption, the group seeks out Mertin von Oldenburg after the contest. There is a competition of singers at night at the landgrave's urban residence, and the plan is to get Nit invited to take part. The earlier incident with Vesogoth has obviously colored the perception of the group, and tarnished Dmitrei's reputation. The Major domo says that the list of performers has already been drawn up, and it is too late for late entrants. He does say that Nit is free to perform on the tournament grounds if she can gather a crowd, though he warns to group to be on their best behavior.
Ingrid goes through the training grounds, fully armored, and tries to get as many people as possible to see Nit's performance. The incongruous sight of a person at arms trying to drum up interest in a musical performance, and she does manage to attract quite a crowd. Nit does not disappoint, going through her regular repertoire, and the crowd continues to grow. Suddenly, Carrot shows up, carrying a wooden recorder in his mouth. He gives it to Nit, then goes to stand off to the side, not causing any trouble or attracting further attention to himself. But his timely appearance has an impact, and the sounds that pour out from the recorder are truly enchanting.
Nit manages to collect a little money from the assembled audience, but more importantly, she seems to draw some important people. A regally-dressed woman, surrounded by bodyguards, listens to the performance from some ways away, and as Nit finishes her set, she approaches. She introduces herself as Countess Kunigunde Gieselbert, and demands that she be addressed with deference, forcing Ingrid to remove her helmet. After chiding the group over the Vesogoth incident, she demands to know what they are doing in town. Dietmar explains that they have stopped over on route to Hegenburg, where they mean to deal with Matilda's predations. In response, the countess wishes them good fortune - better, at any rate, than at the tournament - and has one of her bodyguards hand Dmitrei a bag of coins valuable enough to allow him to ransom his armor from Herr Osswald. Dmitrei and the rest thank the countess profusely, and retire to the Honeypot for the night.
The following morning, prior to leaving, they prevail on Nit to ask Carrot where the recorder came from. Dietmar insisted it was magical, but the donkey said that he simply found it in a haystack at the Honeypot. Dietmar inquires whether Carrot can just find such items at will, and the donkey takes the recorder, and returns with a jester's hat - for Dietmar. He then exchanges that for what seems to be a magical horseshoe. Ingrid searches through the haystack herself, to test the veracity of the donkey's claims, and finds only a perfectly ordinary set of smallclothes.
They collect Erich and Johann, who complain a bit, but with aqua vitae on offer, accompany the rest out of town. They follow the river to the bridge to Wunschau, and then take the southeastern road. Avoiding Putzdorff, and going past the abandoned inn, they finally arrive outside Reimar of Hegenburg on the following day. The gates are open, as before, and aside from a flock of crows circling overhead, the place seems eerily quiet.

Rewards Granted

• Money to ransom Dmitrei's armor
• Some money for Nit's busking

Character(s) interacted with

• Erich and Johann 
• Mertin von Oldenburg, the landgrave's major domo
• Countess Kunigunde Gieselbert
• Various tournament attendees, knights in the countess' and landgrave's service, etc.

Report Date

01 Jun 2021