<strong>"Oh I don't think they would eat you in the way you're thinking of. Stopped bare, covered in honey and chocolates and licked clean is more what Im imagining."</strong>The bugbear waited for the reaction and then soon began laughing at the naivety of the tiefling.<strong>"You have devils blood in you and you're that innocent. Damn I wish we won then!"</strong>He then stopped laughing, a touch mirthfully by the tone of his voice, and then relaxed since none of the real bad stuff was happening to him yet and for the moment he could trust that he was going to be kept alive. Bad for business if they were as ruthless as him.<br/><br/>The wizard, their sponsor was puzzled he looked back behind him for the moment as he listened to someone else they couldn't hear. Not completely.<strong>"Why would I have the need to be quiet about it? The kingdoms pride goes with you and everyone wants to see true adventure."</strong>He thinks things over before conversing with another.<strong>"The dryad will have to wait. They cannot-</strong>He's cut off mid sentence and he listens for the moment. Rubbing the grey hairs of his chin, he contemplates.<strong>"Fine fine, I'll continue..."</strong>He coughed a bit to clear his throat and made sure others were paying attention first.<br/><br/>He composes himself and then begins his more boisterous and dramatic performance. Essentially improvising to incorporate the aspects of the show into the now more realistic issues.<strong>"Well my brave and intrepid heroes, it would appear that your camp has been ransacked and your fellows taken by evil forces. You have magnificently managed to capture and interrogate the wicked bandits and must pursue the rest of the band, lest you be short on resources and without any contact with the world you left behind. Your competition already has a head start on you and once you have completed your rescue the true challenge begins for you!"</strong>He waves is hand showing a blighted grove of woodlands that looks deceit, rotted and diseased as if the very woodlands are sick.<strong>"This blighted grove seems to grow in size, consuming the sylvan territories and putting out homelands crops and forests at risk. Almost like the woods are being turned into marshlands rather than a lush greenwood. Rumors about that a dryad used to tend to these woods and if this is true then something horrible has happened to her. Find the cause of this sickness and purge it. Onward my dear heroines! Adventure awaits!"</strong>A small fanfare comes through the mirror.<br/><br/>After that zealous speech he returns to normal and speaks plainly.<strong>"With that out of the way, to answer the question, I imagine other kingdoms have sent their champions and some aren't prone to playing by the rules of our annual competition. Might be glory hounds seeking the fame and fortune by any means needed. This camp was meant to be hidden so yes someone fed these bandits, these slavers, information. Either way, you'll have to rescue the serfs and merchants at the camp or a lot of your resources will be gone. And you will be at a serve disadvantage as a result."</strong>However the tiefling spoke of the Flesh Bazaar which got his attention.<strong>"They said they were going to the Flesh Bazaar you say? Been hearing more than rumors about that. No my dear tiefling, this is not so much a place for acquiring food per say. Tis a open market for slavery. Be it labor, bodyguards or intimacy. I imagine that our people, your camp of supporters, merchants, cooks and gatherers are going to be sold there. Unless you do something about it of course."</strong><br/><br/>He then adds<strong>"However the disappearing Dryad was the primary plot that the audience came to see. See we heard that the woods in where she lived have gone sickly, and it would not happen if the Dryad is safe. I do not who or what is behind it, but if the Siala still lives, then it is your task to save her. If she dies, the woods will never heal. Plus it will give you a considerable decent number of marks during the competition."</strong>She has a name apparently... so the sponsor wizard, knows this woman on a first name basis. Theres some implications to be made there with that little slip of the tongue he did not notice.<strong>"The woods are southwest of the campsite about three days travel from here. Much as I would like you to handle this first before others do, you'll need to go after the bandits first and in this regard I cannot help you in this unexpected quest."</strong>