Ruedi nods, and is just glad that there's no bounty on him at this time. He was afraid that his ability to influence the dogs would have caused Wulfric to place a bounty on him.
"Do you got any wizardy tricks you can use to switch up how we look?" asks Hamish as they get underway a couple of hours before dawn.
"My size ain't easy to hide but maybe my ugly mug could be changed."
It is a bit late to break camp today, so I assume you stay the night, as I did when the runners passed at dusk. At midnight, the watchman¹, whoever that is, can hear horses approaching on the road. The sound suggest steady and modest pace, no attempt to rush nor to sneak.
¹ as well as anyone making Awareness + Perception 12+ adjusted by noctural or similarly relevant virtues and flaws.
Hamish is on the midnight watch, careful as usual with this band of non-combatants and precious cargo.
When the sound of the horses approaching is heard, he perks up and grows very still.
[Awareness + Per Roll: 19, exploded!]
Two horsemen appear in the moonlight, which is much too bright to make Hamish disappear. They halt briefly, to watch the camp, but say nothing. They carry spears, and they have boxes behind them on the horseback, but otherwise they travel light. The light is not good enough to make out colours or crests. After a little while, they move on.
Hamish pays attention to the two men but doesn't respond or wake anyone yet, though he's going to make them break camp and leave two hours before dawn. The group is too exposed here.
The group continues their journey to the North in the early morning. They make good way in the couple of hours of quiet darkness and twilight before dawn. If you look out, an awareness+perception of 9+ suffices to notice the two riders who have made camp in the shadows of the trees about half a mile North of your camp (15+ to notice if you do not care). Later in the day, they pass you on their way North. You see that they wear the crest of the sheriff of Lincoln.
Peasants and travellers you meet are curious about the your entourage. and many stop close to the road, although few ask any questions unless spoken too.
On the second day it changes noticeably. Peasants and travellers keep their distance, watching with awe. In a village, you pass the two riders who water their horses in front of the church.
Ruedi, feeling much better, and almost back to himself, is keeping an eye out for the riders, and anyone else that might attempt to follow them, and will point them out to his companions.
(Got 14 on the Awareness roll)
Hamish encourages as fast a pace as possible.
"A few days of this, and we should be in the clear and can slow down."
Leofric raises his head from where he is leading his jenny, but just nods. He's been introverted since the incident with Wulfric, mostly praying and thinking. He has also eaten very little.
At some point in their journey, Hamish strikes up a quiet conversation with Leofric.
"So... uhm. Friar. I think something happened back there. With Wulfric. Did you hear it too?"
Leofric raises a troubled gaze to look up at the road ahead, not meeting Hamish's eyes. "Something did, my son," he replies in a repentant voice. "I raised my hand in anger against a fellow man, in defiance of the precepts taught to us by His son."
OOC
I can mention at this point that Leofric has a reputation 1 in Lincoln as The friar who knocked out Wulfric, and Hamish one as the The friar's giant companion. Or something like that; feel free to propose better wordings. If you already had overlapping reputations, you could have reputation xp instead of new ones. (Finn too has a similar reputation if it matters, but Ruedi and Nauvi went under the radar.) Are they good or bad reputations?
Hamish looks over at Leofric for a moment and then says, quietly,
"Do you think it's possible for a soldier like me to see an angel and hear it's voice?"
Leofric looks up at Hamish in surprise, then says softly, "Yes. Angels can appear to anyone. The word of God is for everyone, be they carpenter or soldier, rich or poor, pure or sinner."
You have a few days to talk through your experiences and your plans. Nothing happens until you are more than halfway home, in the Yorkshire Dales.
You still see riders with wearing Lincolnshire colours every once in a while. Now, you spot, on a hill overlook the road, the silhouette of Wulfric, on horseback, with the wolfhead cape on his shoulders. He is completely still, just watching.
Ruedi looks at his companions and asks "Do you want me to try and shoot him down?"
It is a long shot, say 45 paces, or tripple range for the shortbow, if you take a few steps off the road.
Hamish nods to Leofric's comment about angels but says no more.
When they see the Wulfric, Hamish shakes his head.
"I think we move on," says Hamish. "I think that wolf is fated somehow. We need to get clear of this area. But I think we're going to need to throw him off the scent a bit. Let's see how long he pursues us. He may not even know its us just yet."
Ruedi nods his head. That man definitely seems to have more luck than any man aught to have. If he was a devout christian, he would have said that it might be the devil's work more than God's, but he kept his mouth shut.
"Do you want me to hide our tracks? and to better throw them off our trail, to call some hounds, so that they can do their business, to throw out scent off?"