Again, there's no clear consensus after 2 days. I decided to go with JourneymanN00b's vote partly because it's the shortest rewind and everyone agree that we should
at least go back that far (if not more), and also partly because Thaluikhain said it sounds like a reasonable option even though he suggested something different.
You dash out through the front door and across the courtyard - only to find that the main gates are locked. You can't pretend to the Orc porter that nothing suspicious is going on: you will have to fight him before you can escape.
PORTER SKILL 6 STAMINA 6
II you win, and if you bribed the porter to get into the Baron's grounds, you can take back however much you paid him before, plus 1 extra Gold Piece. You find a set of keys in the porter's gatehouse and use one to unlock the gates. Then you waste no further time before leaving the city and setting off westwards to try to find the kidnappers.
Weirdly, if we came out after we questioned the Baron, we can actually trick the porter into opening the gates for us without fighting him if we'd bribed our way in earlier. The text says that the porter is used to seeing guests leaving his master's presence in a hurry and so didn't find it suspicious. Maybe it's because Waterfield assumed that we'd only run out without questioning the Baron because the house is on fire (in which case it's impossible for the porter to not notice), even though the player can choose to do so either way.
COMBAT LOG:
Porter 17, Waluigi 13. Waluigi is at 10.
Porter 17, Waluigi 15. Waluigi is at 8.
Porter 11, Waluigi 15. Porter is at 4.
Porter 15, Waluigi 13. Waluigi is at 6.
Porter 12, Waluigi 16. Porter is at 2.
Porter 11, Waluigi 17. Porter is killed.
Waluigu must be really nervous about the fire, since he did pretty terribly for this combat despite facing a weak opponent.
The text makes it sound like we can only get the 1 extra gold off him if we'd bribed him earlier, but I rule that we can take it anyway. It makes more sense.
And, after 2 failures (technically 1 failure and 1 predicted doom, I guess), our hero finally makes it out of Arion:
Three days later, you are still walking towards the west. There has been no sign of the kidnappers, though occasionally you have felt yourself being watched. If you have King Jonthane's letter, the royal seal will show you where to go in order to meet the kidnappers. If you have come here without the letter, you have failed. Your action will cause the death of the beautiful and innocent princess, as King Jonthane warned you at the very start.
Thankfully, we do have the letter:
A sturdy half-giant steps out from behind some boulders. "I am Otus,' he says. You have something for me. I believe...A letter." Once he has shown you a lock of the princess's golden hair, you hand over King Jonthane's letter of agreement. As the half-giant reads the letter, his face llghts up with dark malice. "Good," he declares at last. "My brothers and my master, Arachnos, will be pleased." If you have heard the name Arachnos before, turn to 137; otherwise, turn to 231.
We knew about a certain mysterious 'A', but not his full name...
It all starts to make sense now: Arachnos the Life-Stealer is up to his evil again. Centuries ago, in the far north-eastern promontory of Khul there stood a fair and prosperous trading city called Faleha; Arachnos gradually made himself master of all its revenue. Monetary gain was not his purpose, though he certainly needed to pay the increasing numbers of his servants, soldiers and minions. He is a creature of Chaos: he must sow Chaos and Evil wherever he goes and, unlike the usual thugs you come across in your adventures, he is intelligent enough to pursue more subtle plans for spreading Evil. In that, not wealth, lies his pleasure. Now it looks as though he has set his sights on Arion. He wants to manipulate the trade in gold until he controls enough of Arion to bring King Jonthane to his knees. No doubt his plans will not stop with controlling northern Khul; he intends to set up an Empire of Evil. Your thoughts are interrupted because Otus is still speaking to you.
Despite the paragraph of exposition, the villain's image is actually still pretty blurred. It's not clear whether "Life-Stealer" is a moniker or his actual species. Obviously, the fact that he existed centuries ago suggests that he's either not human or a very powerful magic-user who uses it to extend his life-span (or it could be both, of course), but the book never goes into more detail than that.
Life-Stealers are an actual species featured in Out of the Pit, but because we never got any physical description of the villain, it's impossible to tell whether he's such a creature. They're supposed to be tall, thin humanoids with leathery skin, bat-like wings, short tusks and narrow heads. They're definitely enemies to humankind, because they eat human flesh, although even in Out of the Pit it's never really confirmed whether they're
evil or just a predatory species who see human as one of their natural food sources. Their intelligence level range from Average to High, so again it's vague whether they behave more like animal or sentient humanoids. Their usual lifespan is also not stated (also the book makes a point of saying that dead Life-Stealers are rarely seen), and there are speculations that they actually don't reproduce (because no young ones are ever seen), which may also suggest that the ones that do exist may be immortal.
Out of the Pit also featured a "rumour" that they may be worshippers of Sukh the Storm God (because of pendants bearing Sukh's symbol being found on some of those rare dead Life-Stealers mentioned earlier). I guess that actually fits in with the idea that the PC of Deathmoor was delayed in his voyage to Arion by a storm - possibly Arachnos prayed to his god to interfere? But that doesn't quite square with Arachnos being named as a Creature of Evil and Chaos committed spreading them across the world. Because despite his volatile and unpredictable disposition, Sukh is actually not generally considered an Evil god, he's actually officially on the side of Good, although that doesn't prevent evil people from worshipping him.
Anyway, ramblings aside...
"You wait here now," says Otus, jabbing a finger as thick as two ordinary fingers into your chest. "I return with the princess in two days. "Will you do as he says or not?
Do we wait?
Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Waluigi
SKILL 9/9
STAMINA 6/16
LUCK 10/11
Equipment: Sword, leather armour, Potion of Fortune, King Jonthane's letter (number '88'), large phial of sallow-seed oil, a needle and some thread, tinderbox and flint, lodestone
Provisions: 9 (only restores 3 STAMINA per meal for rest of the adventure)
Gold: 4
Boons: Magic Mushroom (x1)
Notes: Visit the City Guard station at room 56 next morning to check if the murderer has been arrested. 2 of the 3 half-giants (not named Otus) working for 'A' loathe each other, and their love of money and their hostility towards each other make them less loyal to 'A' personally (reference from section 312).
[/spoiler]