11 - Gathering the allies before assaulting forth

(Nesvalyn only)
When arriving, the brothel is open and seems to run as usual. At the reception, Nesvalyn notices one of the previous murdered employee, who greets him in a friendly manner. When Nesvalyn asks who's in charge, he learns that Pria is the Matron by interim until a vote is done, as the brothel still needs to run. After asking, he's allowed to see Pria.
After knocking and being invited, Nesvalyn enters the office, noticing Pria cleaning up and removing the dead flowers. After a casual chat, Pria asks more details about what happened Jonni. Nesvalyn starts to unfold the full story.
[Persuasion check - Pass ✔] Nesvalyn managed to sum up and explain properly the story so far.
During the story, Pria sheds some tears, where Nesvalyn pauses and reassures her. Once she's caught up, she decides to share the situation later to the other workers.
After that, Nesvalyn requires some help from her and the Brothel, to be a fort and a safety place during the siege (but mostly to keep the civilians and the injured safe in case the siege spills in the city).

Upon the agreement, Pria mentions that a Collar came last night, mentioning that they're planning something big.
After that, Nesvalyn spends a bit of time with her to help cleaning up before going reuniting with the group.

(Persy only)
When arriving, Persy notices many corpses around (mostly the Collars we dealt with last night).
Persy goes in the undercroft^[1], with its global status improved since the last time. He asks where Hosta is, and she seems to be in the Vestibule. Persy heads there, and notices Hosta looking dirty and sweaty, while drinking to unwind a bit. She looks up to Persy.
"Hope I'm not intruding" (Persy) - "No, come in."

Persy looks around, and finds a chair far away and sits (far away).
He then starts to mention the entity of the Hole, resuming our discoveries so far and what happened yesterday when he interacted with them.
"One moment." - She closes her eyes, then reopens them with her eyes rolled back and stares out for a minute. After that, she blinks back and gets back to herself.

• Sorry to keep you waiting. The best to do is to throw that in the bottom of the ocean. Walking around with what we believe this highly improbable occurrent, me and whose I represent think it's best to not take any chance with that.
• I have a hard time thinking it's that important, as it is one of the first elements we acquired, and it was in the "Lost & Found" content.
• The nature of things that are divine have the tendance to work in impetuous ways.
• Do you have any recommendation? Aside disposing it.
• Be confortable that taking that chance could bring the end of the world.
• How so?
• Can't tell you that, I'm sorry. If I seek its name, it will be more powerful.
• That kind of entity, huh? Persy sighs. What a drag. Do you know why it resisted my shield?
• Something strictly undead, yes, it would protect you, like lower species. Something that powerful, you'll need something more that this tiny shield.
• Is there truly no way to make this space safe? Like banishing it perhaps?
• Not something we know, but someone else may.
• Who? You know them?
• No, it was more in a rhetorical way.
• I was hoping you were that person, too bad. Thanks for telling what you can.

When leaving, Hosta calls out Persy

• If you could refrain from killing more people.
• I would prefer that, but that doesn't seem to be the way of the group.

When he was about to leave, Persy realize we never asked help to Hosta and the temple, and proceeds to ask Hosta.

• How did you plan to attack with only the five of you?
• We have more allies, we won't be us five.
• Please tell me you don't plan a siege.
• Persy looks away for a bit. Well... yes.
• Tell me what's your infirmary, says Hosta after sighing.
• Well... I... we... didn't planed about it?
• Ok, here's what we're going to do. I'll take over your medic situation during siege. Once it's done and hoping you'll succeed, you'll do a generous donation in my name.
• Fine, says Persy, then shrugs.
• I'll work on something to setup.

• I'll wait for the signal for the war meeting. Now get the fuck out of my office.

(Reylynn and Willum)
[Investigation - Fail ❌] The first hour doesn't give anything.
[Investigation - Success ✔] On the second hour of searching, one construction worker heard a machine outside the city along a little camp, but didn't checked further.

The duo will wait for the party to regroup before checking Wingnut.

The party manage to regroup in late afternoon. After sharing our global progress, we decide to head towards that camp, where we assume Wingnut is.
On the way, Willum asks more details about Nesvalyn's fiancé and their details, to also keep an eye. He pauses a moment, then lashes what seems to be insults in draconic, then coming back in common "I'm really the worst fiancé, I didn't even took time to ask around if they found them.", which Willum recomforts a bit Nesvalyn.
Upon that, Nesvalyn describes his fiancé, Paildreo, being a taller gold dragonborn than Nesvalyn with the purest yellow he ever seen in their eyes, and mentions their marital braid as another distinctive sign.
(Related quest entry: [Looking for Paildreo]).

Bouncing on their description, Nesvalyn mentions he would like for the group to stick together (especially with Willum) to search for the missing persons, then asks for more details about Ludwig to Willum.
He starts to describe his adoptive son.
(Related quest entry: [Looking for Ludwig]).

[History check - Success ✔] During the discussion, Persy recalls meeting Ludwig when travelling to the North. But he left on a different boat and earlier than Persy. Ludwig shared his goal to explore the magic mountains that no discovered right before.
Persy looks at Willum right in the eyes. "I think I met your son?"

Willum has a bit of hope, while hearing the story from Persy. "Might be my fault. I said countless stories about great and not-so-great heroes. I thought if he would do something like that, he would took me with him."
Persy and Nesvalyn suggested he may have want to emancipate a bit.

After bantering on the way, we hear machine noises and two people talking joyfully.

We decide to approach casually.
When getting closer, we notice a small nice constructed forest camp, with a blue carriage, but with no horse in sight. The center of camp has fireplace, along several workbenches around.
We see Wingnut running and grinding something over the fire, sitting across a half-crooked half-elf (Ikellunt the Magnificent). They stop the conversation when noticing us. They seemed to be working on the structure of a mech.
We start to talk, wondering what they were building. The half-elf looks down to us, mentioning we wouldn't understand. Nesvalyn mentions that Persy would understand, and he can try us, to which Ikellunt chuckles and refuses.
Willum orders to get the information about what they're doing, with Wingnut retorquing he doesn't owe us. The situation gets a little tense, and Nesvalyn tries to calm a bit.
Both Willum and Wingnut keeps arguing, where Willum mentions we already took him and his mechas, we can do that again. Ikellent prepares a spell along Wingnut preparing some gear, a fight could erupt at any moment.
Nesvalyn mentions we don't have to fight again and that we should act civilized, and asks Willum to calm down. "Trust me, I am calm, you've seen me angry." - "I know, that's why I'm asking you."
On that, Nesvalyn proposes to start from anew, and proposes a deal to buy the schematics and some intel.
[Persuasion check - Success ✔] They're kin to negotiate, and Ikellent let go his spell, the tension is gone.
They ask 5% of the cut of the vault for the plans of the Hookshot.
After a few negotiations, we strike the deal to 3% of the cut and giving all the rations we have against seeing the schematics of the Hookshot (as Persy mentioned he only needs to see them to recall them).
Wingnut goes to prepare the schematics once the deal is struck and all our rations given.
While we wait, Ikellent proposed to buy scrolls and potions.

Once we saw the schematics and done our shopping, we're leaving the camp.