Payback

[[Roll: 18]]

Queen Terrana, the current ruler of the kingdom, had married the king as a young woman (practically a teenager) in spite of him being much older. But this had ensured she outlived him after only five years of marriage. She had spent the subsequent twenty years ruling with an iron fist, gathering wealth and sycophants around her. Her two daughters had not been able to take the throne from her and were currently living in exile outside the kingdom.

The legitimacy of Queen Terrana's reign was shaky at best, but due to strong support among the nobility she had retained her position. The queen held absolute power over the justice system, able to pardon any crime or to convict anyone of a crime without need for any other approval. This was how she had exiled her own daughters.

There was nothing to be done about Hal Jacobs, he had settled into the palace and infiltrating it to get to him would be an enormous task.

But what Runa could do was target the queen's legitimacy. Her Justice Minister (who handled the appointment of judges and handled the day-to-day running of the courts due to the queen having little interest in most cases) was a man named Friederich Hines. He was a Count, and famous for having a sprawling manor with an impressive art gallery. The centerpiece of his gallery was a national relic known as the Golden Gavel, one carved from a rare type of wood that shone with a golden light. This was used to officiate the most important cases in the nation's history, sometimes going years without use. Among the few times it had been used in Runa's lifetime was when the princesses were exiled.

Runa was a thief. There was nothing she could do to change the justice system of this deeply flawed nation. But what she could do was steal. And by stealing the Golden Gavel, she would be dealing a blow to the queen's already shaky legitimacy.

Which meant her next target was the Hines Manor.