The Ashworth Manorial Ledger
An independent investigator is summoned to Ashworth Manor following the sudden death of its patriarch, Alistair Ashworth. The investigation must navigate the household's meticulous routines and documented proprieties to determine the circumstances of his passing.
Initial Crime Scene
The air in the study is thick with the scent of beeswax and a faint, sharp chemical tang. From the corridor, the rhythmic chime of a mantel clock counts the silence. Your gaze lands on the large oak desk, its surface scarred by a patch of bleached, fibrous wood. Dust motes drift in the slanted light from a gap in the heavy velvet curtains. A Persian rug lies bunched near the desk leg.
Crime Scene Environment
The manor's environment is defined by the low, warm glow of gas lamps and the deep, cool shadows of paneled wood. The air is dry and still, carrying a constant acoustic density: the creak of floorboards, the distant, muffled chime of clocks, and the faint rustle of fabric from another room. The tonal atmosphere is one of respectability under strain, where every surface and sound feels meticulously controlled.
Investigation Constraints
The setting is a 1920s English country manor. Technologies are limited to mechanical and chemical tools: fountain pens, carbon paper, manual typewriters, wax seals, mechanical clocks, gas lamps, basic chemical reagents for household cleaning (ammonia, bleach, chalk), handwritten ledgers, telegrams, and early-model automobiles. There are no electronic devices, computers, or digital records.
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