As the group approached the city of Coruvon, they maintained their guard the whole time. Bask was put into the back of the wagon and covered, to prevent anyone from freaking out on seeing it.

The guards at the gates only gave them a cursory examination before letting them into the city. The streets weren’t packed, but people were everywhere going about their business. They wandered the city for a while, eventually coming across a small street of cobblers.

This started to remind Sylvester of something, but he wasn’t certain what it could be. So, he led them around on the nearby streets until he found a decently sized square with a small grove of trees in the middle. The trees were tall and old, with pale gray bark and oak leaves, though it didn’t look much like any oak tree Sylvester had seen before.

This, however, was still enough to let him realize what had happened and why this city was different than it should be: there was another dungeon here. The Oak Grove Whispers was a dungeon based around an ancient religious site below a different city, but it had instead been placed in Coruvon.

Now that he knew what was going on again, Sylvester quickly began planning. It would likely be a couple days before the Oracle came to visit the party, so they would have time to deal with this dungeon. Further, the Oak Grove Whispers was a dungeon on a timeline. If he and the group acted fast, they could end up saving several lives and get filthy rich in the process.

“Alright! I have figured out what is going on.” Sylvester announced to the group.

“That’s good.” Neil commented

“So, what’s the plan then?” Karrank asked.

“It is getting late, but luckily I know where we can get a place to rest for the night. We will have to do a small bit of fighting, but it shouldn’t be anything extreme. To Shoehaven Manor!” Sylvester began leading them with purpose back past all the cobblers, Boot Street to the locals, and up to Shoehaven Manor.

It was a modest manor, which included a large yard circled by high stone walls. Stepping up to the door, Sylvester used its shoe-shaped knocker to knock on the door.

After a few moments, a voice called out from the other side of the doorway.

“Good evening, sirs,” Came the slightly muffled, but gruff voice. “I fear Master Galenar has taken ill and cannot entertain guests. I blame the trout purchased from Dean the Fishmonger. I shall tell the master that you were kind enough to call.”

“My name is Sylvester Bayes. I am an accomplished priest and have brought my companions to help deal with your master’s… situation.” Sylvester called out. The rest of the group was used to his foresight at this point, though it was getting scarily accurate.

The door cracked open, spilling wisps of fog out onto the street. Peering out at them was a man dressed as a servant. He carefully looked over the group.

“I see. In that case it may be best for you to come in.” He said, pulling the door open more. Despite the hour, the inside of the house was incredibly dark and filled with thick fog.

“Could we move our wagon into the yard first?” Sylvester asked, gesturing behind himself. The wagon was taking up a sizeable portion of the street. “This may take some time.”

“Certainly,” the servant nodded. “Allow me to get the gate for you sirs.”

He quickly came out of the house and brought their wagon into the yard. Bask was taking a nap and didn’t stir as the wagon was parked and the horses loosed into the yard.

Once the wagon was taken care of, the group was led into the reception room of the manor and seated. There was plenty of furniture, though it all had a shoe motif. In one corner was a large pile of blankets that appeared to be functioning as a bed.

The servant lit up a lantern and placed it onto the central table, providing light to the room so that everyone could see. The flickering light cast large shadows on the walls that reached the ceiling.

“Unfortunately, I don’t have any refreshments that I can prepare for you all.” The servant apologized.

“That is fine. We are here to deal with the cause of all… this.” Sylvester waved off his concerns while gesturing to the ever-present darkness and fog that filled the house.

“And I thank you for the aid you are offering. My name is Bernard Drumley and I can answer any questions you may have about the situation.” Drumley offered.

“This fog is certainly very creepy.” Karrank commented, keeping a careful eye on the surroundings.

“Indeed. There isn’t any good reason for the house to be so dark like this either.” Neil analyzed.

“The source of it all is the crown on Ethan Galenar’s head upstairs.” Sylvester explained.

“Incredible that you could discern that!” Drumley exclaimed in wonder.

“Why aren’t we heading straight up then?” Kurt asked, knowing that there had to be more.

“We have two obstacles,” Sylvester began to explain. “Nightmares given flesh. One, a butcher with a pig’s head, will attack as soon as we enter the hallway to enter the sitting room. The other, a wax monstrosity, will attack us in the sitting room itself.”

“Astounding! How are you planning to deal with them?” Drumley asked, still awed by Sylvester’s knowledge.

“The butcher’s preferred method of attack is to charge past someone while attacking them. I will bait him so that the others can launch their attacks. For the other one, the wax is weak to fire, so Neil will use burning hands. I can create water to put out whatever else gets lit.” Sylvester directed.

“It is a shame that the sitting room would be damaged, but it is worth it if you can rescue the master!” Drumley declared.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Sylvester picked up the lantern and led the group out of the room. The entirety of the house was filled with strange shadows and thick fog, giving the impression that something was just out of sight following them.

They quickly ascended the stairs and Sylvester handed the lantern to Val. He quickly lit up a second and handed it to Drumley, who looked slightly confused by the need for a second lantern.

Sylvester readied his shield and stepped into the hallway, turning as if to go down toward the sitting room. Like he had predicted, the pig-headed butcher charged down the hallway with a vicious squeal. He swung his carving knives wildly, but Sylvester caught them all with his shield.

Everyone had been ready, and attacks poured onto the butcher, slamming him into the wall and interrupting his charge. Before he could recover, Karrank managed to strike him down with his serpentine dagger.

Once everyone had calmed their nerves again, Sylvester led them down the hall and into the sitting room. It was a large room, with several comfortable looking chairs and a bookshelf filled with books. One lied open on a table next to one of the chairs. Sitting in the chair was an older gentleman with a crown on his head and his eyes rolled back. On his forehead was the image of a bearded man and the top came together to form an oak tree. Emerald’s embedded into the crown pulsed with a green light, giving the crown an ominous appearance.

The room also had many candles which were strangely lit. As they proceeded into the room, their flames burned brighter, and the wax all began to flow into a single mass in the center of the room.

Sylvester nodded to Neil who took his place and began to chant the arcane words of Burning Hands. Everyone else took up positions around him to prevent the wax nightmare from interrupting the spell.

It struck at them, but they managed to keep Neil safe for long enough for him to finish the spell. An enormous gout of fire burst from his hands, nearly hitting his companions, and completely illuminating the room for a second.

As everyone blinked the lights from their eyes, they saw that the wax monstrosity hadn’t been entirely defeated and they sprang into action. Sylvester quickly moved to finish it off, but it quickly slipped around him and swiped ineffectually at Neil.

Kurt sliced into the monster with his enchanted sword while also dodging its retributive strike. Taking advantage of its distraction, Neil and Sylvester both struck, causing the monster to dissipate back into the fog that filled the manor.

Sylvester quickly began to create water and put out the burning armchair while the others worked to stamp out the fires smoldering on the floor.

Soon, the room was filled only with the group, Ethan Galenar, and the smell of soot.

Sylvester approached the man and began trying to bend the bronze tree atop his crown, but the magic of the crown strengthened it, preventing him from doing so.

“Here, let me help.” Karrank offered while stowing his blade.

Together, they managed to cause the tree to bend over with a sudden lurch. Instantly, the fog and darkness shrouding the inside of the manor were gone. It wasn’t completely lightened due to the darkness of night, but it was certainly not oppressively dark anymore.

With that, Sylvester easily plucked the crown off Mr. Galenar’s head, causing him to finally stir.

“Oooh. My head…” He moaned, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Master Galenar! You have recovered!” Drumley nearly burst into tears.

“Recovered? Oh, what happened? The last thing I remember… was fancying that crown and putting it… on.” Mr. Galenar started as he realized that the crown must have been cursed. “My word! I never should have put that cursed thing on! I assume you all are the ones who have freed me from it?”

“Yes. I am Sylvester and these are my companions Kurt, Karrank, Neil, and Val.” Sylvester introduced the group.

“Then you all have my thanks!” Mr. Galenar declared, already regaining color in his face. “Let me retrieve a proper reward for you all, and if there is anything I can do for you just let me know!”

“Thank you for your kindness.” Sylvester replied as Mr. Galenar led them back down to the sitting room. He left Drumley to entertain them while he went off to retrieve their reward.

Now that the manor was safe once more, Drumley was able to provide some tea to the party while they waited. Only a few minutes later, Mr. Galenar returned with several small bags.

“Here you all go! I have prepared three silver bars for each of you to thank you for your assistance!” He explained as he jovially handed out the bags. 150 silver pieces was a very generous reward, but clearly within the man’s means.

“Thank you for the gifts,” Sylvester politely thanked him before continuing. “We have just arrived in the city and are currently without a place to stay. Would you mind if we used your yard for a short time? We have an animal companion which can make it difficult to find places to stay.”

“Certainly! That is hardly even a request!” Mr. Galenar quickly accepted.

“Thank you then. Now, we do have another bit of business to tend to before the night is over. We need to deal with the source of that crown.” Sylvester decided.

“I see, well I wish I could help you more, but my memories are currently not what they should be and I cannot remember who provided me that crown.” Mr. Galenar shook his head in disappointment.

“Not to worry, I already know where we need to go.” Sylvester assured him as he began leading everyone out of the manor. Neil, it was decided, would be the one to stay behind and keep watch over Bask and the group’s equipment. They would have left Val, but she was neither trustworthy enough nor willing.

Back on the streets, the bright moon light lit the way for the party. The streets were mostly empty, but lights were still on in many of the surrounding buildings. Sylvester led them down boot street, across the small Whiteoak Square, and into a large building with a picture of a large grey mule and a tankard hanging from the signpost.

“The Gray Mule?” Karrank guessed as they headed inside.

“The local tavern,” Sylvester explained. The tavern was still busy with many of the locals. Some turned to face the party as they entered, but most just kept to themselves. One wall had several doors that led to private rooms, one of which seemed to have several gamblers spilling out of it.

“Karrank, I need you to watch the woman with the red hair. Don’t hassle her or make it obvious, but let me know when she leaves.” Sylvester ordered, which Karrank shrugged at. He grabbed a drink and took a seat off to one side of the tavern.

The red-headed woman, eponymously Red Kirsten, certainly stood out from the crowd. She was dressed in revealing clothes and many of the women in the tavern were shooting her dirty looks or outright glaring at her.

Sylvester led Kurt and Val back to the bar where several men were drinking and chatting. Sylvester walked over to one man in particular, a pudgy man with a reddened face and priestly robes.

“Father Nial?” Sylvester called out to him.

“Ah, yes! That is me,” The man turned and quickly composed himself slightly. “Is there something I can help you with?”

“My name is Sylvester Bayes. I am here to help you deal with the voices coming from the church’s fireplace.”

“Wha-?” Father Nial was entirely taken aback by hearing such a thing. “I must be more drunk than I thought…”

“You heard me correctly.” Sylvester confirmed. Father Nial made a few more half-hearted denials but was interrupted when Karrank walked over.

“Looks like some man came over and propositioned her for the night. They just left.” Karrank whispered into Sylvester’s ear.

“Father Nial, it is critical that this gets sorted out tonight; preferably within the hour.” Sylvester laid out his ultimatum.

“What could possibly be so urgent about this?” Father Nial frustratedly asked before relenting under Sylvester’s stare. “Well, let me finish this up and we can get going.”

In a very un-priestly fashion, Father Nial upended his mug and chugged the rest of his alcohol. He placed some coins onto the counter and began leading the group out of the tavern.

Luckily, the local church was only a few doors down. Carved into the stones above the doorway was its name: Church of the Builder. Father Nial unlocked the door and led them inside. It wasn’t a large building, and the space inside was primarily taken up by pews that led up to an altar. To one side was a statue of a man in raiment’s carrying building tools. Behind the altar was a decently sized fireplace that was completely dark.

Father Nial lit a few candles and brought everyone over to the fireplace. It was filled with ash and partially burned logs, but otherwise appeared like a normal fireplace.

“We are going to need to empty the fireplace.” Sylvester explained, to which Father Nial produced a bucket for the soot and charcoal. The group worked quickly and soon the fireplace had been cleaned out.

“Alright Karrank, you’re up. The floor of this fireplace should be a concealed trapdoor.” Sylvester explained. Karrank got to work checking the fireplace while Father Nial looked aghast at Sylvester.

“Well, I should certainly hope it is not!” He blustered.

“It is.” Karrank confirmed, lifting it open with ease.

“By the lord!” Father Nial exclaimed. “Why is something like that there? Where does it lead?”

“That shaft leads down to another fireplace in an ancient druun complex below the city. It is the source of the voices you have been hearing.” Sylvester explained while beginning to climb into the shaft.

“You plan to descend it?!” Father Nial exclaimed in shock. Even Kurt and Karrank were leery at the thought of it.

“It is a safe descent,” Sylvester assured them all. “Besides, it isn’t how we are getting back up. There is another path which is much easier, but this is the one we need to take at this exact moment.”

With a sigh, Kurt and Karrank also began to descend. The shaft wasn’t difficult to descend, but it was completely dark and completely filthy.

“Gaah! This is going to take forever to get out of my fur!” Karrank complained as they continued downward.

“I’m not even sure my clothes are going to BE cleanable after this.” Kurt added.

“Would you prefer to go down this way or to break into an innocent butcher’s shop in the middle of the night?” Sylvester called up.

“Does it matter? We are in the shaft now.” Karrank grumbled.

Their conversation died down, however, as they began to hear voices filtering up from below. Further, they were finally able to see slightly as they approached light at the bottom of the shaft. Thankfully, it wasn’t because the fireplace below them was lit, but Sylvester hissed at them to hurry up their descent.

As they continued, the voices started to sound angry, with shouting and cursing making up the conversation. A few more seconds later, Sylvester popped out of the fireplace at the bottom of the shaft.

He found himself in an opulent chamber. An enormous oak table stood before him and the walls were decorated with carvings of feasts, all threaded with elegantly shaped white roots.

Sylvester also got a glimpse of Red Kirsten fleeing the room, with three other women chasing after her. Three more men, standing away from them turned with surprise to face Sylvester and the currently emerging Kurt.