21st of Last Seed
 

It has been a week since I began tracking those merchants, yet I have found nothing. I fear I allowed my determination to cloud my judgment. My investigation must have drawn too much attention, for the merchants have vanished without a trace, likely retreating into hiding until the danger has passed.

With their trail gone cold, I have little choice but to turn my attention elsewhere. Until they reveal themselves again, I shall devote my efforts to investigating the grotesque dungeons and the mysterious tomes that accompany their victims. I have taken to calling these volumes the Books of Depravity, for no other name better suits their lustful and profane contents.

As I travel, I gather samples from the fleshy growths surrounding the entrances of these unnatural dungeons, hoping they may reveal the source of their corruption. At the same time, I continue my search for additional Books of Depravity. More than once I have been mistaken for a degenerate, for only the depraved would openly seek such obscene literature. Yet the moment I present my credentials as an agent of Stendarr, suspicion gives way to understanding, followed by embarrassed apologies.

The work is slow, painstaking, and often thankless. Each sample collected and every cursed tome examined brings only fragments of the truth. Still, if I am to put an end to this malevolent corruption once and for all, I must leave no stone unturned.