24 North

In Solnótt’s feast hall, Wulf drinks with his lith while elders trade tales. An argument erupts when Karlsten needles Wulf about his origins, stoking unease over Bardholt’s conversion and the Dreadmount. Cut by the slight, Wulf leaves to read a letter from Mara, reflecting on dimmed skies and rumors Bardholt suppresses.

Thrit and Regny find Wulf by the mudpots. Regny reveals orders: ride ahead to Ófandauth to assess a reported sickness and secure the Issýn. At dawn, Regny enforces lith discipline by making Karlsten hold a burning coal for breaking his oath to keep Wulf’s secrets.

The lith rides north into the bleak Barrowmark. In a gorge, a terrified sanctarian begs them turn back, warning of a curse that starts with reddened fingers; he admits the Issýn is locked inside her home. Despite Sauma’s caution, Regny insists on proceeding to learn the truth and protect the Issýn.

Ófandauth is silent—no livestock, no smoke, the air rank. While Regny and Thrit search, Wulf and Sauma find a blood-slick slide where the sanctarian had sat, likely taken by beasts. Determined to understand the threat, Wulf slips behind a waterfall into a cave, where he discovers clustered, boulder-like objects radiating heat and revulsion.

When Wulf touches one, it burns hot, then fissures and steams, reeking of brimstone and something unnatural. Shaken, he retreats. Regny arrives with Thrit and the Issýn, whom they have secured. A horrific cry rings from above, spooking the horses, and the group flees the village at speed, bearing the Issýn back toward Solnótt.