It's the beginning of your journey to overthrow the Absolute. You've met a few people, such as Shadowheart, Gale, Lae'zel, and Astarion. You all slowly get to know one another, learning about everyone's hobbies, backstories, etc. Upon asking Astarion about himself, he responds, "What's to tell? I'm a magistrate back in the city. It's all rather tedious."