One of our required tasks has been to find evidence in a trial against Fournival. He’s a financier who may or may not be treasonous. This quest lasts for days in game time. I get all the documents and even escort in the witness. Just as a spoiler: I’m pretty sure that the witness is the key between guilty and innocent. The affidavits are busy work. I do it all, though.
Fournival is acquitted. I’m not sure if this has any meaning to the story, but it’s a quest that can’t be ignored. Why is he so critical? Well, the crown isn’t happy he’s loose, although they abide by the law. When he’s declared guilty he disappears from gameplay, imprisoned. So does his shop, which has almost nothing except one or two endgame items that are otherwise unavailable. Maybe the answer is that simple. You want some kind of magical one-shot arrow? Save Fournival.