Having just arrived in the small village of Aldeia de Raiz, the group formerly known as the AAA Fixers For You were surprised to find the residents of the town in a dark mood - shortly before they arrived a body had been discovered in the town square. The victim, an ornery janitor named Jose Sujeira, was found with a clean cut across his neck, adorned with the funerary crown traditional to The Ashen Bough.

The crowd of onlookers were shouting accusations against each other; each leveling a different damning theory as to why it could be anyone but themselves. With the support and sponsorship of Salvadaro Harbin Glumbo, the group was enlisted as impartial outsiders to get to the bottom of the vicious slaying. The local constable Margarida Gomez was assigned to oversee the investigation, but was quickly dismissed when her measured approach was serving to hinder the witch hunt.

Suspects

While it seems that nearly anyone could have found reason to want this despicable man to suffer, it seems that a few of the townsfolk had legitimate gripes with the deceased. Though the group was open to investigating anyone that came across their radar, it seemed that a number of the villagers stood out.

Joao De Pedra

Being an outsider already set Joao under suspicion, but it didn't help that Joao was also Jose's landlord and was known to be having a conflict with the man over back rent, and for attempting to pawn his tools to Gabriel Cardoza only a few nights prior.

Vicente Anbrosio

Though he works as the village deputy, Vicente is known to be an abrasive drunk - and one that continually found himself at odds with Jose. It was only a couple nights before that the deputy had to be ejected from The Hollow Antler for drunkenly antagonizing Jose while he was at work; Vicente retaliated by waiting outside the tavern and arresting the janitor after his shift ended for "public intoxication". Marge released him the following morning.

While searching the deputy's apartment, they found large quantities of expensive alcohol and a suspicious locked chest. In opposition to Constable Marge's desires, the group was able to convince Mayor Rodrigo De Maya to temporarily incarcerate the deputy so he couldn't flee town or tamper with evidence.

Julia De Maya

Though it seemed unlikely that the two would have had any cause to interact, it turns out that Julia, the mayor's daughter, had recently been seen leaving Jose's apartment at an unconscionable hour. During the course of their investigation, it came to light that Julia and Joao De Pedra were having a secret affair.

Jose had discovered this, having seen Julia discretely coming and going from his shack behind Joao's house and used it as leverage to demand a large sum of money from the wealthy young woman. Though she paid the ransom, Jose claimed he was going to reveal the details of their illicit romance regardless.

Ol' Boothby

The oldest man in the village, Boothby is an eccentric mute who the village looks after. The man was found in the village square with the body, but was unable to defend his presence. Using intrusive telepathy Svorcra was able to discern that Boothby was the one who placed the wreath on the dead man's head, but was not the one who killed him.

Other Theories

While speaking with the 'Unofficial Leader', the barber surgeon Gilherme Amêijoa presented the group with an interesting theory that may carry some weight. Apparently, the murder took place the night before an inauspicious occasion: a cycle of murders that occurs every 80 years.

Gil presented a theory that, perhaps the murder is associated with the grim slayings that happened nearly a century ago - The De Cabra Murders. While his proposal would require a supernatural evil to be the cause of the death, there are certainly less improbable things that the group had encountered together. The facts of this cycle of slayings was later validated by Inez Celezia, the town's antiquarian and historian.

Dinner with the Glumbos

As it so happened, the group had been invited to dinner on this grim evening, and, considering the timing, decided it might be a good time to go check on their companions. It was at this moment that the group decided to stop in for Dinner with the Glumbos.

Unfortunately, despite their tremendous effort and exceptional valor in the face of the ancient hag, Theda Vidigueira, it appeared that the cyclical murders associated with the D'Albergaria Estate were unrelated to their murder investigation, and when they returned to Aldeia de Raiz, they had to continue their investigation without any new information.

Cult Involvement

While interrogating the deputy, Vicente Anbrosio, Svorcra discovered that the detained lawkeeper was involved with a sinister cult known as The Mycelial Thread, and had been acting as a courier between the obscured members of the Thread. Lord Elgor believed that an adherent to the old ways may potentially have handed out divine justice according to the doctrine of The Ashen Bough, so the introduction of a competing religious doctrine further muddied the waters.

Final Confrontation

The deeper the group dug into the mystery, the more suspicion was cast on the mayor, Rodrigo De Maya. His willingness to cast a strange and inexperienced group of outsiders with an important investigation, his gift of a treacherous manor on the eve of a horrific cyclical massacre and his supposed ignorance to the pilfering of the town vault all painted a picture of someone either hiding guilt, or entirely incompetent.

The group decided to stop chasing their tails and confront the mayor with these accusations and, after applying pressure, he finally confessed that he was the one who ended José's life. While they successfully uncovered the murderer, the entire investigation was cast into question when it was revealed that the murder fell within the framework of law adopted by the people of the village - The Ninefold Path.

Knowing from the start that he was exonerated for the killing, the frustrated adventurers asked why they had been tasked with this investigation. The mayor's reasoning was sound, though no less upsetting: the community was on the verge of tearing itself apart with neighbors accusing neighbors and having an outside group cast an impartial investigation would ease the tension, allowing him to keep his execution in the shadows - thus protecting the reputation of his daughter, Julia De Maya.

As for the accusation of intentionally sticking the Lord of the Land in a cursed manor, he insisted that it was simply poor timing: the village council decreed that the manor should be gifted to Lord Glumbo many years ago as an attempt to gain favor with the ruler. He never arrived to claim the gift, however, and when he finally showed up on the eve of an inauspicious event, no one had the heart to tell him he couldn't claim the dwelling. This excuse was delivered in full sincerity.

This didn't sit well with the group, however, and they claimed that if his actions were truly virtuous and fell within the framework of their law, then there should be nothing to hide and the people of the village should be the final judges. Though he was unhappy, De Maya consented and dismissed the group from service.

Celebration

Lord Glumbo, despite his creeping depression over the disfigurement of his partner Magda, decreed that a party should be held in their honor at The Hollow Antler. While it was a kind gesture, the group was slightly confused as to why no one seemed at all concerned that the mayor killed a citizen. Glumbo told the group that these people hold to an ancient and barbaric law tied to a superstitious old religion, and while he didn't agree with it, he didn't feel it was his place to cast judgement on their way of life.