The inside of the Worried Wyvern Inn is packed with patrons, all eating, drinking, and talking. The inn's proprietor gives the party a friendly wave from behind the bar when they enter. When they approach, he welcomes them and informs them that he has hot meals and well-appointed rooms available if they're interested.

Meanwhile, Davor heads over to the merchants' flat to inquire if anyone has seen Bruiser. Most merchants deny having seen him, but one claims that a man matching Bruiser's description stole a horse from him and fled further south a couple of days ago.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:54, Sat 05 Nov 2022.

Arra had gone with Davor, a tiny waif in the Half-Orc's massive shadow.

"Two days, and on horseback, our prey has a considerable lead."

She hissed when they heard the news, baring her slightly too sharp teeth.

"Let us hope what wisdom you have as to his next move is sound. Shall we tell the others?"

Davor thanks the merchant for the information and starts heading back towards the inn. He waves for Arra to follow. "Don't think we were ever goin' to catch him on the road. We can be pretty sure he continued south and that's more then we knew this mornin'." When they reach the inn, he lets the others know about what the merchant said.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:24, Sun 06 Nov 2022.

While Davor is out and  about, Alfie goes looking for a local smith. He forgot to buy a pot.

"Well, if Bruiser is indeed headed to Caracara, it doesn't matter much if he's got a lead on us. The festival isn't for quite some time yet, and that's where Coby thought he would strike again," Sakr says with a shrug. "I'm not too concerned."

She sniffed.

"We find what passes for lodging here then, and move on in the morning? Or do we go looing for trouble here?"

Her grin made it sound like she was much more interested in the latter.

The party rents rooms in the inn and passes the night without incident.

Long rest.

Early the next morning, they are awakened by the sounds of banging and shouting in the hallway.

Alfie stick his head out the door, "Shut the Hells up. I'm trying to sleep in here."

Davor immediately grabs his weapon when he is awoken by the noise. He also sticks his head out the door to investigate. "I could make some noise back at 'em. Give 'em a taste of their own medicine."

Arra pressed herself up against her own door, ears straining to hear, but did not open it. A hunter did not charge in without knowing the prey.

Aeowin woke up and sent out his familiar, an owl, with a silent command out the door as Davor opened it. He shifted his perception to the owl, seeing through its eyes, hearing through it ears.

Stay high up near the ceiling.

Down the hall, the door to another room stands open, with a brightly garbed merchant standing nearby. Next to the door are several large, iron-bound chests stacked one on top of another. Two burly guards carry another chest from inside the room and drop it onto the stack with a loud bang. "Dammit, you louts! Be more careful with my merchandise!" The men pay the merchant no mind as they go back into the room for another chest.

"What's going on?" Sakr asks his companions, reaching for a sword. "Is there some sort of trouble out there?"

"Just some rich fool shoutin' at people. Doesn't look like trouble unless we want to make some." Davor pulls back inside the room and his expression seems to suggest that he is indeed contemplating making trouble.

The banging continues as the two men continue to empty the merchant's room.

"Eh? And why would we do that?" Sakr asks, cocking his head at Davor. "Let him be. It's time to get up anyway."

Aeowin returned his senses to his body and got up:"I agree with Sakr, looks like the merchant hired transporters that are a bit too rough with his wares. Not getting involved .. ".
He glanced around:"Unless we wanted the merchandize by offering to transport it and then selling it .. but we're not that kind of group, right .. ?".
He said it like a joke but was probing for what moral guidelines were appropriate to adopt in this group.

Aeowin rolled 6 using 1d20.  deception.
Aeowin is not particularly versed in social interaction

Davor shrugs. "The shoutin' doesn't botter me, it just might liven up the mood a little. It could be innocent fun." He appears willing to let the matter rest and instead starts putting on his armor.

To Aeowin he simply responds. "I'm usually about a hair away from gettin' run out of town as it is so I don't like to give people an excuse."

Arra opened her door at Aeowin’s words, showing her surprisingly sharp little teeth in a fierce scowl.

”Taking what wasn’t mine without knowing whose claim I was staking is exactly how I ended up on this flea ridden excuse for a mattress in the first place.”

The words of a thief then.

”Strangers can have powerful patrons, even fools. Do you know who that merchant’s patron is? If the answer is ‘no,’ then I don’t want to bite off more debt than I’ve already earned myself.”

She delighted in mischief, but the Fey of the Night had a substantially more violent view of what constituted “mischief.” No moral quandaries around separating a fool from his gold, but not until she knew who she might anger in the process.

"Alright, alright" Aeowin raised his hands: "Just making clear we're on the same track".
He drew an imaginary line on the walls:"The narrow margin, the straight path .. ".
He clapped his hands:"So .. off we go then now that we're awake? Quick breakfast and tally ho, old chaps? Early bird catches the worm and all that".

She reached to the hook by the door, grabbing her backpack and slipping it over her narrow shoulders.

”Far be it from me to dissuade you if you want to have some fun. I might even join you in such wicked pursuits.”

Next came her wooden shield, as she slipped her arms through the straps, nestling it against her back.

”When we’ve no hunt before us, you and I? We can find ourselves a fool with no patron worthy of the name.”

Finally her staff, a thick piece of hickory that had been well sanded and oiled.

”Our prey has a lead, let us cut it.”

Sakr gathers his belongings and follows Arra and the others out of the room and into the hallway. "We should eat something before we hit the road," he suggests.

Alfie glares at the loudmouth as they exit their rooms, "I'd rather have had the extra hour ina  real bed."

Davor also spares a glance at the merchant as the group marches past, but his expression is more of a menacing grin than a glare. He catches the merchant's eye and adopts his most cryptic tone. "Those iron bands may keep out the Fae, but the spirits know what you've done."

Once they're well past the merchant, the half-orc shakes his head and comments to Alfie. "Too many real beds and you'd forget what solid ground feels like Alfie." He shoots a glance at Sakr. "A good meal never went amiss though."

The merchant summons his guards and hides behind them as the adventurers pass him and his belongings in the hallway, watching them warily.

When they reach the barroom downstairs, they find it is empty, apart from the innkeeper, who is standing alone behind the bar.