"You did a good job finding us a room, Reid"
Inside the lofty inn room with glinting chandeliers hanging from the white ceiling and red carpeted floors with three separate bedrooms, a kitchen, bathroom and living room, the travellers lounged across the mahogany furniture.
"Of course, young master. Nothing less would have sufficed."
"Indeed. It is lovely, though." Kicking her boots off, Daly relaxed across an armchair with a sigh.
Staring out the window to his right, Leon's mind floated back to his conversation with the strange man from the market.
What in the Holy Spell is the 'Nine?' Was he just some lunatic spewing nonsense?
I didn't just get pranked, did I..?
He snuck up on both Daly and I and managed to get within sneezing distance without detection. He's no random nobody - even if he is a little crazy.
-----
"I'm sorry, the 'Nine?' I'm afraid I'm not sure what you're talking about." Shooting a confused look toward his companion and seeing her mirror his bewilderment, Leon took a step back from the man before him,
"Ah, so you don't know. That's... difficult. No matter - this much is to be expected." After slowly adjusting the crystal monocle over his left eye, the man made a show of his hands before pulling a playing card from his vest.
"Take this, I shall visit again soon."
In a trance, Leon slowly reached a hand forward, attempting to grasp the playing card. Before he could successfully touch it, the card fell toward the stone path.
The strange man had suddenly vanished, leaving the playing card drifting down in the wind.
With his hand still partially outstretched, Leon gazed from the card to where the man once stood in front of him and back to the card once again.
"What the fuck..."
-----
Turning the ordinary-looking playing card over in his hands, Leon ruminated on the conversation, only to be left more confused.
When he first passed it to me, it appeared to be a 7 of Hearts. After he vanished, the card was entirely blank, and now it shows an Ace of Spades...
"Hey, Daly. What do you think of that guy from earlier?"
"Hmm. I reckon he's just some local magician. That last trick was incredibly well done, but rather simple when you think about it. He dropped the card, making our attention fall to the ground while he took a step back into the bustling streets." With a visible shrug, Daly reclined further into her armchair, disregarding the strange encounter entirely.
Maybe... Is he some crazy magician, or a powerful scholar?
*****
Two identical brown and black spotted horses trotted along a walked-on grass path leading toward a large inn somewhere within the Beast Glades.
Our rides are tiring.
"Jasmine, are we staying here, or just getting supplies?" The questioning voice hardly matched its owner's description. The deep, hollow, augmented voice contrasted with the small boy clad in a black cloak, a white mask with a blue music note, and many strands of auburn hair flailing in the wind.
"Just getting supplies. We'll be gone soon. After this, we'll head back to Xyrus."
A gentle, cool wind blew across the patch of grassy plain. The beast glades held many biomes and environments of differing seasons. Of all, Arthur enjoyed the Spring Plains of Xyrus the most. The calm breeze carried the welcoming reminder of his home nearby.
"You head in. Turn in our bounty and get our reward. I'll get the horses some water." Dismounting their tired steeds, Arthur pushed aside the swinging wooden doors of the Dragonspire Inn.
Immediately, the loud chatter audible from the stables outside died, and all eyes fell on the small masked boy resting a casual hand over the hilt of his sword.
"Hey, you don't think that's him, right? Certainly matches the description..."
"I'm telling you man, the rumours are all bullshit. He ain't tough - Look at him!" A laugh resounded through the tavern before a sudden slam from another table silenced the room yet again.
Downing a jug of Vipers Blood Tonic, a burly adventurer stood from his table, stalking towards the centre of attention near the entrance.
"The 'Masked Swordsman', huh? HA! Look at 'em!" Making a show with his hand, the burly adventurer compared his own height to that of the boy in front of him.
"Move. I don't have time for your drunken stupidity." Motionless, the masked swordsman, suddenly shrouded in a faint black-silver glow, as the adventurer was thrown back by an unseen force, landing sprawled over a nearby table.
Approaching the bar with slow, confident steps, Arthur Leywin placed a sheet of paper stamped with the official stamp of the Xyrus Adventurer's Guild onto the wooden countertop.
"I'm here to claim the bounty for an A-rank mission. Clearing the bandit checkpoint near the base of the mountains."
After a moment of shock, the bartender regained his composure and took the piece of paper.
"A-h y-yes, of course. This contract requires proof of completion. The contractor asked for his daughter's golden necklace as proof-"
Drawing an antique gold necklace from his dimension ring, Arthur dangled it in front of the barman before he quickly took it, placed it in a small brown bag and handed Arthur a sack of coins.
"Pleasure." With a respectful nod, the masked swordsman walked with the same confident stride back towards the swinging doors.
Moments after the wooden doors had finished swinging behind him, the Dragonspire Inn hele the same silence as when he arrived.