It's much later, that I finally close the book with a heavy sigh. I have learned what I have come to learn, but it wasn't easy. Good gods and goddesses, but it really shows in every paragraph that this woman, the one called Bianka the Pale, was a learned woman of many words. Goodness gracious, I'm sure the book was well received among academic circles, but it has probably driven more than one adventurer to tears since then. At least that is my best guess. I'm certainly close enough. That my [Arngarm] skill improved a little is only a very weak consolation by comparison.

It's a small miracle that the guild even has the book on it's shelf. Or maybe not? It probably is the one book you must have on the topic of the restless dead. Still, I really wish someone would try their hand at a more easily digestible rewrite for the more simple minded adventurous folks.

Well, at least I now know that ghosts really are no trivial matter. Especially when they amass like they do on the hangman's hill just outside the city. That's not good. Not in the slightest. Someone needs to do something about it and yet none of the people who know seem willing and even less of those are well suited to the task. I'm not exactly a good match either to be perfectly honest.

The best solution would be a grand ritual to guide all the lost souls to judgment and whatever awaits them afterwards. Rituals like that aren't within the domain of Fox though. Fox is the divine patron of masks, mischief, having fun and natural shapeshifters. No, rituals like that are usually the purview of gods and goddesses of death or judgment in general.

A necromancer might be able to entrap the souls within gems to power spells and the likes. A practice that is not well liked in general. Probably because most people are not very comfortable with the idea that their very souls could be used to power some workings of magic. I know that I certainly wouldn't want that to happen to me.

Massive magical trauma can sever the bond trapping these restless souls in the mortal world too. Not all magic is suitable though. It has to be the magic itself that deals the damage, not some elemental secondary effect. Ediva's fancy explosive spell for one wouldn't do much against ghosts. No by far the most achievable option, for me right now, would be an enchanted or blessed weapon. And since I'm not an enchanter, I'll have to see about having my blade blessed.

I push the book a little further away from me and sigh again. A visit to the temple it will be then. Either one of the other priests can help me out or I'll have to talk with Fox themselves. They answered my prayer to consecrate my little shrine out in the woods, in the hidden tower after all. Maybe a blessing for my sword is within their and my possibilities too.

I sigh again and, as I'm already about to put the book back on the shelf, I stop dead in my tracks. My eyes widen a little, as I catch sight of a slight irregularity. That back cover, it's most certainly too thick. Not by much, but it is! My [Perception] skill improving a little strongly suggests that I'm not wrong. I take the book back to the reading table and start to get a better look at it. I don't rely on my eyes alone either. I carefully run my fingers across the protective leather cover of the book and I check the binding in greater detail too, to make sure I don't miss anything.

Sure, there are wooden backings both in the front and the back cover. Those might be of uneven thickness, but I'm pretty certain that that's not it. No, I'm pretty sure, there is something, a single leaf of parchment if I'm not mistaken, hidden in between that mentioned wooden backing and the last page of the book, which in theory should be firmly glued to it, which it isn't.

Now that is a nice surprise! A hidden treasure? Well, I won't know until I check. But how exactly would I get it out without damaging the book? Visibly damaging it would be a sure way to get the guild clerk, and possibly the guild in general upset with me. That is something I'd rather avoid if it's in any way possible.

Did the actual author of the book hide whatever is hidden there? Or was it just some scribe who copied the book? I check the writing again, but I can't really find any clues. The real clue becomes apparent as I check for an afterword. There already is a very fine cut where the last page, an empty one, connects with the wooden backing in the protective leather cover. My [Perception] improves another little bit and I almost crow in triumph only reigning in the impulse at the last moment.

I could, quite possibly, reopen that little cut that is only glued down rather haphazardly. And if I wet the glue again afterwards, maybe with a little spit, I should be able to close it again, almost as if there never had been anything.

This is dangerous. Not in a physical sense but regarding my social standing. I decide to go for it anyway. I have only one knife suitable for this task. My very sharp and fine purse knife. I get it from my pack and set to work, carefully reopening the already existing cut. This time around it's my [Sleight of Hand] skill that benefits.

Finally, at long last, after bending the book just a little I can pull the hidden parchment free from its hiding place.

Turns out it's a folded piece of parchment that looks like it's from the same batch as the rest used for this book. The letters and drawings covering it are similar to the rest of the book too. It's been written by the same hand of that I'm certain, but the letters are much smaller and more densely packed. This single piece of parchment contains easily as much information as about eight regular pages.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

I wet the tip of my fine knife with some spittle, using it to wet the glue of the makeshift secret compartment too and a moment later it looks like nothing has happened. I put the book back on the shelf, sandwiching it in between two others a little tighter than before just in case. I put away my purse knife too, after wiping it properly before I turn my attention to the hidden parchment.

At first I'm a little disappointed, as there is no immediately useful additional information about ghosts. It's the author's research notes. That disappointment quickly fades though. In fact I begin to feel a little grudging respect for this Bianka the Pale. It seems she was from the frontier lands herself and conducted her research around here too. And while she was a learned woman, the notes aren't in the same overly flowery style. They are crisp and too the point. The information density is much higher than in the rest of the book and not just because the writing is smaller either.

Judging by the information she gathered the frontier lands have always had a problem with the restless dead. At least to some degree, depending on the most recent history of the time and the exact location. Big battles for dominance over the disputed lands or monster rampages resulted in more undead roaming the land in general. There is a geographic pattern to it too though. She even included a rough map displaying the pattern.

I fold the notes back up and hide them in my pack. It seems the woman was onto something there. Something that might be worth the effort of further investigation. I better be careful about it though. And dealing with the ghosts around hangman's hill might just provide the necessary cover to keep it a secret. And I really want to keep this a secret. The sage who discovered this thought it best to keep this quiet too after all. Thus I better not make this common knowledge either. Whatever is going on, I want a head start on the investigation.

One thing is for sure already though. This is good enough information to justify another bit of progress for my [Gather Information] skill. Now I just need to make sense of it.

The little map featured the river, as well as some of its more notable tributaries. That isn't quite as helpful as it may seem though. The river's bed is unregulated for the better part. It could have moved over the years. In fact it almost certainly has with every bigger flood. The cities marked on the map are another matter though. Even at my first glace I have spotted several I have only heard about so far. I need a real map to make sense of those names and the actual distances involved.

The illustrated guide to the frontier's wildlife has a map, but it really isn't any better than the one on the hidden note. It's more for overview. A quick look at it reaffirms that assumption. None of the other books are about geography in general either. A very long winded book about local history, full of dates, names and flowery descriptions is the one that comes closest, but the maps it includes are quite possibly even worse.

Well, that's another point on my agenda then. Have my sword blessed or enchanted somehow and get a look at an actually decent map. I'm starting to suspect that the former might just turn out to be easier achieved than the latter.

After one last look around to make sure I leave the reading room in good order, with no signs of my transgression evident, I'm off to the counter down in the lobby again. After returning the key I leave the guildhall, heading directly to the temple for once. I don't take a rooftop detour to turn to Fox directly this time either. Instead I enter the temple's main hall with all the easily accessible shrines of the more mainstream deities like everyone else would.

I don't have to go looking for a priest or priestess either. One approaches me as soon as I enter. Surprisingly enough I even recognize which goddess the middle aged woman serves. Her garb is very similar to Aila's, including the holy symbol of Simja she wear both as a pendant and as an ornament on her armor. I bow respectfully, as she steps close and she returns the gesture.

"Welcome, I'm Daria, a priestess in the service of Simja. What can we do for you?"

I flash her a brief smile before I answer.

"I'd like to ask for some general advice if it isn't too much trouble."

I nod in the direction of a bench a little to the side in between two shrines. The priestess nods in turn, leads me there and takes a seat besides me.

"Very well, what is it that's on your mind?"

I clear my throat and begin to explain, in hushed tones. The latter not because I want to keep this hushed up, well not just because I want to keep the issue hushed up, but because it feels kind of wrong to raise my voice beyond what is strictly necessary this close to the shrines of other gods and goddesses.

"Well, the issue is, I visited Hangman's hill just outside town not to long ago, around dawn, and the experience was a little … unsettling. I did a little reading on the restless dead in general and ghosts especially over at the adventurers' guild afterwards too, and even without quests regarding it, I don't think the issue of the ghosts amassing there should be left untended."

The cleric of Simja actually looks a little troubled at my words, but she nods and doesn't protest.

"Something really ought to be done about it, yes. Ghosts are not the kind of threat easily dealt with though."

I sigh and let my shoulders slump a little.

"I know. It's not just one issue either, isn't it? I mean, there is a political aspect to it too, isn't there? The criminals executed there are buried in unmarked graves and without ritual for reasons, aren't they? It's supposed to be a deterrent, right? To keep people from walking a lawless path?"

Again the woman nods.

"That and usually it takes time for this practice to actually become a problem. One murderer or bandit buried in an unmarked grave without any rituals hardly is a problem. If its dozens or more some decades later though? Well that's a different matter than. And of course it's never easy to persuade either a lord or their subjects to spend coin on dealing with the matter right up to the point where the ghosts may start spilling into the homes of the living."

I lick my lips.

"And even if someone were willing to take the risk and deal with it without pay, there is still the matter of how to deal with the ghosts. This isn't just some walking skeletons or shambling zombies that could be cut down or smashed with any good weapon. This is immaterial ghosts we are talking about. So I was wondering. I'd need to get my sword enchanted or blessed to stand a chance. How would I best go about that?"

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