I was tricked!
I arrived at the inn to see Shani ambushed by another group of thugs. A few minutes later and she would be worse off than Vesna. I disposed of them and got the key from the innkeeper’s body. I told Shani to wait there and made my way to the hideout. I was obviously lied to by the reverend and most of the village. It was time to clear things out.
Two Salamandra lackeys were guarding the entrance and several more were inside the house. Once I cleared the place out, I’ve found two things. First of all, there was a shipment of crates with Haren’s markings on them. He was obviously working with the Salamandra. Secondly, there was a trapdoor, leading to an underground set of caves.
I guess money’s all that matters.
Alvin led me to a collapsed passage I could clear with my Aard sign.Past it was Abigail, preparing a spell she intended on using to save herself and Alving. She was more forthcoming now and finally told me about everything that was happening. Odo killed his brother. This explains why he had issues with Echinops plants in his garden. These plants usually grow on graves, so he must have buried his brother there. It would also explain the dog’s behavior.I descended and found another group of thugs to dispose of. Once they were dead, a bunch of children came out of hiding, including Alvin. Apparently, the villagers were giving them to the Salamandra as some sort of tribute. It was now certain that the reverend was in on it.
Mikul and some other villagers raped Ilsa. She hid in the crypt and drank the poison herself, not being able to live on with what happened. He might have had affection for the girl, but it was a dark, twisted kind of affection. As for Harren, that part was already obvious. He was nothing more than a profiteer. He would sell his stuff to anyone, regardless of what would be done with it.
The reverend, of course, was aware of it all. He approved, and even instigated a lot of the things that were happening in the village. He even exiled his own daughter, after she got pregnant, condemning her to a life of prostitution inside Vizima. None of them deserved to live.
Mob mentality.
The battle was difficult, but thanks to some of Abigail’s spells, I prevailed and the beast was dead. The celebration as short, though. The reverend assembled his three lackeys and decided to try his luck, hoping I would be exhausted from battle. I was tired, but not tired enough to be beaten by a bunch of degenerates. In a few moments, they were all dead.I left the cave and Abigail followed. Most of the village, led by the reverend, was waiting outside, hungry for blood. Once the reverend was scared of, though, their courage dissipated and most of them dispersed. It was now time to deal with the beast.
Mikul was the smart one, though. He was nowhere to be seen. I took a city pass from the body of one of them, which would now allow me to finally enter the city. I got to the only open gate, at the old mill and found Mikul on his guard duty. At first, he seemed cooperative, accepting the pass, even though he knew it wasn’t mine, but it soon became apparent what his intentions were.
The gates opened and a squadron of the city guard, led by the captain, arrived and surrounded me. There was no point in fighting them. If I wanted to enter the city, it had to be through a jail cell. I dropped my weapon and let them arrest me.
