2. Who dunnit ? Who killed Thunder ?

"I see no reason to disturb these creature any further. Let's go, and avoid the webs" Gray says, looking up at the pair of arachnids.

You still in the garden and they jump from the vegetation around, apparently they were already in the garden.

Hix, upon seeing two giants spiders spontaneously make themselves known, proceeds to leg into the house.

Spider 1 Attacks Martha, Spider 2 spit some web toward Gray. Luckily for our friends neither the first, nor the second spider hit their targets.

Seeing no reason to bother the spiders, Martha joins the others in escaping the garden back into the mill.

Our heros succeed in getting our of the dangerous garden avoiding any more attack from the spiders.

They are back in the mill proper.

Recovering from his furious tactical retreat, Hix ponders for a second, "You think those spiders ate whoever was living here?"

"I don't think so. We would have seen the cocoons if they were that large, right?" Martha nudges the elf. "What do you think?"

"Yes we definitely would have noticed cocoons, and more signs of a struggle if all the residents were attacked by the spiders. I do hope they are alright though, wherever they are." Gray says with a sigh "but that's not the mystery we are here to solve. Shall we head to the orchard?

"Let's go, then."

There is absolutely no sign of cocoons or webs in the house, and even in the garden you did not see the amount of web required for such large cocoons.

About the orchard, it is already nearing the middle of the night, all this poking around trying to discover information took some time.

"Well, it's late." Martha glances around. "Since we already broke in, what about calling it a night here in the mill and going to the orchard tomorrow?"

Gray resigns himself to this plan. "Alright, I'll take first wacth in case the owners, or anyone else shows up"

"Sounds fair. I'll sleep with the box we found just in case."