Sentinel Hill is less impressive than the stories make it sound. A few sturdy buildings, a broken windmill, and a lot of worried people. Found the man I was told to look for, Gryan Stoutmantle. Big warrior type. Square jaw, loud voice, and the kind of confidence that comes from believing Stormwind’s army could solve everything if they just hit hard enough.
He wasn’t particularly thrilled to see me.
"Another one of Shaw’s shadows?" he grunted. "We don’t need knife work here. We need men willing to stand and fight." Still, he gave me a few jobs. Mostly scaring off Defias raiders from the nearby farms. While we spoke he mentioned something interesting, rumors of a masked Defias agent moving through the area. Someone smart. Someone turning people against him without ever showing their face.
"Damned cowards," Gryan muttered. "If they’d just come at us straight, we’d crush them."
I didn’t say what I was thinking. Sometimes the knife in the dark wins over the sword in the open.
Later that evening I bought a couple of farmers some drinks at the makeshift tavern. Most of them were bitter and tight-lipped, but one old fisherman with weathered skin and cloudy eyes eventually warmed up after a few mugs. He spun a long tale about Captain Sanders, the mad old sea captain who supposedly buried a fortune somewhere along the coast before the Defias got to him.
Most people laugh it off as a drunk’s tale. But the way the old man spoke… there was something real in it.
I listened patiently and bought him another ale. He stared into his mug for a long time, then looked at me with surprisingly clear eyes.
"I was once like you, lad. Always chasing the big score. Freedom. A fortune. A way out." He gave a rasping laugh. "Thought about taking the secret with me to the grave… but I know these people. They’d dig me up and rob me even in death. Better you take this."
He slid a worn, yellowed piece of parchment across the table. One corner of a map.
"Who knows… maybe you’ll have better luck than I did."
I didn’t ask why he chose me. Maybe he saw something familiar in my eyes. Or maybe he was just tired of carrying it. Either way, I now have the first piece of Captain Sanders’ treasure map in my pocket.
This might get interesting.