Merchants of Orda

Our adventurers find themselves in Orda, a city of molten glass, spice merchants, and intrigue. It was ruled by the Demarch of the Ordan Dominion, Relas Salithan, a philosophical leader held in high regard throughout the continent of Canar until that person met their untimely demise. After their death, rumors pour through the streets of Punty and the back alleys of every ward, all speculations of how they met their final end. The news surrounding their mysterious death is of special import to the spice merchants as they fear that any hint of assassination could cause Ordan citizens to descend into chaos, tossing company profits into the Shallow Sea. So, they grind up the truth until fact and fiction are too intermingled to tell much difference in either; the Demarch died of natural causes.
The merchants of Orda fall into five factions: Trith and Sudslow; Mother Moon Wares; Pegasus Trading Company; King Cardamom Spice; Goblin Golem Imports. Members of these are known as spice merchants in the streets of Orda though not all deal in spice. Trith and Sudslow own a significant portion of the arcane spice business. Mother Moon Wares manufactures and sells glass in every imaginable make and model, even weaponry. Pegasus Trading Company controls the shipwrights and performs maintenance on all vessels and docks, especially in Export. King Cardamom Spice sells all manner of spices; from long pepper to dragonbark, it can be found in a crate with a King Cardamom label. Lastly, Goblin Golem Imports controls the entire Import ward as well as the automaton taskforce that works the docks. All five companies hold a significant stake in Orda and would do much, even kill, for the chance to grow their empires or see a competitor's company fail.
Our heroes receive a missive at a tavern in Lehr Ward. One of the spice merchants wants to hold a meet but will not reveal their name or company until after the new leader is elected. At the end of the missive the letter reads, "I know how the Demarch died."