The three of you walk into the Urn & Basket, Smidge’s finest and only drinking establishment, and without warning are immediately greeted by a mug of something sliding off a nearby table on its own and flinging itself straight at wall near Nim, narrowly missing her and smashing into pieces. Everyone in the place now has your full attention. There’s an awkward silence. Daisy seizes the chance to announce that there’s a rampaging army destroying villages and somebody in charge better do something about it!

That ‘someone in charge’ happens to be in the room, as it happens. Mayor Goblicus (it’s a family name, and yes he knows it sounds like ‘goblin’), comes up to introduce himself. He’s a nice enough fellow, but not all that bright in the ol’ brain box. He’s horrified by the news of the halfling village attack and suggests it might be orcs. A band of them attacked Smidge not a few months back, and maybe more of them are about, you know, orcin’ things up. The village itself was saved valiantly by the U.O. – the Underworld Overseers. “They can’t send the Pure, of course,” Goblicus explains. “But this is the next best thing.” The Overseers have set up camp right next to the cave where the orcs exited and have been there ever since, protecting the village from harm. Their commander is Arch-Overseer Brunus Tostyn, the mayor tells you, and he thinks she’s a great lady and that the whole fighting force is doing a great job. A real good job, don’t you know. The mayor is sorry for Daisy’s loss but sees no further cause for alarm.

[[NOTE: Everyone knows that the underworld is a vast network of tunnels and caverns where monsters breed and do their monstrousness. It’s a whole world down there. Its common knowledge that dwarves come from the underworld and live there, somehow, among the monsters. (Meta Note: If you’re familiar with Forgotten Realms, it’s basically the same thing as the Underdark.) And Dov knows about the Overseers themselves; he explains they’re a special mercenary force with a contract from the Crown to protect municipalities from underworld threats. This has become necessary since the King’s Army has been stretched thin fighting the wars in the east against the lizardmen, and the Pure (the famous paladins) have their own important quests and glories to pursue, and there’s too few of them anyway to protect each town and village. Smidge doesn’t have a militia of its own since so many able-bodied humans are pressed into the army. And Daisy’s village has (had?… sad) a militia since halflings aren’t sought after to join the army. Because racism.]]

Besides orcs, Goblicus also suggests the possibility that werewolves are to blame for the halfling carnage. The villagers actually caught one not long ago killing cattle and have jailed it up in the Temple of the Protected. Daisy demands action from the mayor, but doesn’t get much traction; he keeps deferring to the Overseers. Furious, she storms out, and with Ambrosius, heads straight to the Temple of the Protected, with Dov and Nim trying to keep up. Protector Nikanor, Cleric of Om-Striom (an evil god) and warden of the werewolf, answers the Temple door, but he is far from helpful; in fact, he’s actively a jerk and refuses to assist, even when Daisy manages to shove past him into the Temple interior and threatens to kick his Big Folk Butt. So the party, with a galloping sheepdog-mounted embodiment of halfling rage in the lead, heads straight to where the Overseer camp is supposed to be. Maybe this fighting force will actually do something.

On the way, you pass a well-kept country estate surrounding a stately mansion, which you assume is Protector Nikanor’s. In the woods before you reach the Overseer camp, you are stopped by a surly helmeted blue-caped human man with a “U.O”-emblazoned sash, and armed with a crossbow and a very heavy frown. Did I mention he was surly? Exceedingly so. He says he’ll pass on news of your concerns to his boss Brunus, but otherwise demands you leave the area at once. The party is no match for his sizable frown of surliness.