Jasper's Journal: The Sword of Sunlight

8th of Utkar, 1491 DR
 
My mind was a bit foggy for a few moments whenever I was pulled out of the room. Sergei was holding me back, and strangely, I was holding a skeletal arm in my right hand. They told me that I had been charmed somehow, and that Ander was charmed the same way! On top of this, the spectres from the other room were still trying to break through after us. As Morric worked to get Ander out of the room, I prepared my climbing equipment, so that we could just send Ander down from the balcony to the floor below in the event that the spectres burst through the walls.
 
Morric wrapped Ander up with rope and then handed it through the doorway back to us. Sergei and I took the rope and heaved, yanking Ander out of the room against his will. As he passed the threshold, he immediately began to look a bit dazed. It was clear that he was recovering, in just a few moments he began to act like his normal grumpy self. We discussed the possibility of jumping off the balcony, but we all were a bit confused as to why my image in the painting would tell us to go up if there were no pathway.
 
We all agreed that there must be some secret. But, they all though that the passage must be behind the statue. I informed them that they must think like a Vistani! The statue clearly was just misdirection, and the true doorway would be somewhere along the middle northern wall. They all looked at me skeptically, but I was handed Ander's Wand of Secrets. I pointed it at the location where I figured the door would be and used the wand. It began glowing for a brief moment, and pulled my arm directly to the spot where I thought the door would be. I bowed before them with great flourish and told them that my skillset was always useful, and to never doubt the skills of deception and trickery!
 
I handed the wand back to Ander, and I took a step within the room. Though, things began to get a bit hazy after that point... The next thing that I remember I am standing in the middle of a hallway which seemed to be connected to that same secret door. It seemed that I had been struggling and did not want to leave the foot of the statue. They told me that I was charmed by the statue again, and was sitting at the base of it playing cards with skeletons. It would have been nice to know that the statue was the reason I was charmed in the first place! Though, that does sound like something I would do if I had been charmed by a statue...
 
I around the small room that we were in, and they explained that the only thing they found was a chest which said: "The true treasure is knowledge." Apparently they broke that chest open, which triggered a trap that sent them all plumetting into the floor below, and my dear monkey Piccolo was able to help them get back up. Sadly, the only thing inside the chest was a small scroll that said: "The true treasure is knowledge." What a sad treasure indeed! Knowledge is great and all, but it cannot pay the bills like treasure can! However, I looked to them and told them, "You have been deceived again! Think like a Vistani! It is another deception. I promise you, there is another door in the far wall."
 
Ander, though he doubted me, chose to humor my brilliance! He pointed his wand at the wall, and with it, he revealed another secret door. We passed through the door, which opened into some sort of study and living quarters. Inside was a skeletal figure with bright red light shining through his eye sockets. It was the lich which Vilnius has told me about. The lich who did not know he was a lich. The lich whose memory had been failing, but that knew the location of the sun sword.
 
He was very polite and amiable, to my surprise! He offered us tea and wanted us to spend time with him, as though he had been lonely.
 
[Finish later]
 
~ Jasper Solavich