Our band of heroes head back to the mansion to deal with the creatures in the overgrown rose bushes. By the tracks, they know that large weasel-like creatures make it their home. Using the bag of rats they try to lure them out, but with the rats heading into the holes and the feast they had with Trull’s dog, they don’t appear. No one is thrilled with the idea of crawling under the bushes so our heroes start shooting jets of flame into the rose bushes to drive them out. To no avail, the tunnel system appears to go under the walls and gives the animals too many escape routes. Finally, they settle on setting up some non-lethal traps and will come back later.

Then into the dungeon to deal with the undead alchemist. They decide to rush him. Bursting the door open they charge, tackle the creature, and proceed to do as much damage as possible to it. As a last-ditch before it’s death, it releases a blast of eldritch acid which badly hurts the party, before having his skull caved in by those left standing.

The party licks its wounds, heals as best it can, and then starts the process of gathering up their booty. Inseron, the ship’s carpenter, who has been with the party for most of the adventure, builds sleds to help them drag the goods back to town.

Bookkeeping time. The DM assigns experience, the party divvies up the treasure, and players figure out what needs to be done if they leveled up. Decisions and directions are made for their characters, hit points are rolled, and the characters have more robust capabilities. Or as the DM put it “gloves are off, now it gets dangerous”.

Back at town, the characters have a night of celebration, aided by Thaylin’s unusual generosity and spending (where did she get her gold???), and are hailed as the “Heroes of Saltmarsh”. Revelry ensues, and it may have been the grog doing the thinking, but Trull decides to test out the magic coin they found in the belly of a corpse. Instantly, she transforms into a large wardrobe in the middle of the bar, which is taken as a great party trick and barely acknowledged at how odd it is for people to suddenly become furniture. The effect wears off the following day, long before the hangovers do.