Formerly a sergeant in the city watch, Verik has been demoted to private following his involvement in the All the World’s Meat debacle. While it came out during the investigations by the Wyldcats that he probably was innocent of the worst of the crimes he did go awol during the riots and through his blind incompetence completely missed the murders and involuntary cannibalism caused by his associates.

This isn’t the first time Vancaskerkin’s incompetence has connected him to the Wyldcats. His lack of any serious investigation into the disappearance of Graham’s child’s kidnapping brought both Graham and Pip to Zellara’s house in their hunt for Gaedran Lamm. He also mishandled the murder case that lead to the false conviction that Volturio set out to disprove. Years before that he had reported on Pip’s actions during a pursuit of notorious murdered when Pip killed the criminal, this lead directly to Pip’s dismissal from the guard.

Verik is on very very thin ice with the Field Marshal, though perhaps his own incompetence hides from him just how close he is to dismissal and being run out of Korvosa altogether.