Matthew's second entry into Dread Fort began with theft.
The corpse wagon route would not surprise them this time, but that did not make it safe. The driver appeared at a different point along the road. The inspection lasted longer. The wagon was sent toward another processing hall after entering the gate.
Matthew's party adapted.
They abandoned the wagon earlier and used the first bell sequence to cross the outer yard before the missing driver was discovered. Blank servant insignia carried them through two passages. The copied map guided them around the military quarter.
Matthew had rejected the idea of damaging a random building. Fire would attract guards, but it would not necessarily attract the one person they wanted to study. Killing another patrol would reveal more of the fortress's military response and nothing about the authority commanding it.
