 Back in Kansas, the Baron, Nathan Mandeville, greets the companions warmly and shows them great hospitality, offering them fine food and comfortable lodgings.Nonetheless there is a subtle undertone of something sinister in the Baron's attitude, further emphasized by veiled, ambiguous warnings from the ville's sec boss, Harry Guiteau, as well as the extreme security measures in place throughout the ville.The following day the companions are invited to participate in a series of public, competitive challenges, which they accept.