It was midday in the city of Karstberg.

What this meant was that the city was bustling with activity. The market district, for example, was packed to the brim with people. Some were running errands for the shops, or to the shops. Others were customers, owners, vendors, merchants, or simply people trying to get somewhere and taking a path through the market district itself. The Noble Quarter was quieter, but still quite active. For today was a nice, sunny day. A day of warmth. Insofar as even the most attentive of weather-watchers could tell, there was no news of conditions changing. All across Karstberg, the streets were active and filled with people moving place to place, or children playing.

Yes, for almost everyone in Karstberg, it was a day filled with activity. From the very legal dealings in the open to the back-alley or dark tavern-dealings that the city watch would be very, very interested in hearing about. From children to adults. Certainly, there were some people who probably weren't big fans of the sun, but many of them were out as well. Or they had people out for them, either way.

---

"Well... I just learned that sixty gold would be generous for such a ring, " the man said. He was clothed in fine robes, blue with a golden trim. He had short, neat brown hair and a neatly trimmed-beard. "So, I'd be happy to take it off your hands for that much."

"Oh... thank you, thank you!" cried Emi. Or rather, at the moment, Seri Valine. Seri was a poor girl whose sick grandmother had given her this ring. Desperate for finding some way to care for her, Seri had ventured into the market district in a bid to sell the ring for money to care for her grandmother. The ring itself glittered, a shining diamond mounted on a golden loop of metal. "Y-you don't know how much this means to me!"

The identity of Seri Valine had been cultivated well enough, she felt. Ragged dress(it had been a shame to rip it, but getting the money was more important...), and an equally-ragged hood(Nem were pale, so preventing herself from burning in the sun while keeping the appearance up was important), and a wavering, timid voice. All of this had contributed to the very false existence that was Seri. As for the ring itself...

Emi held a dirty coinpurse out in trembling hands. The man opened his own coinpurse, and dropped sixty gold into Emi's. Bidding several more thank-yous and bowing her head as she handed over the ring, Emi backed away and shuffled off into the crowd. She had overheard the man consulting his companion. Apparently, the ring was worth three hundred gold...

Funny, the last time she checked, a brass ring with a glass jewel wasn't even worth sixty copper.

Grinning as she tucked her coinpurse away, Emi headed through the crowds. That had gone so perfectly! That big guy had no idea what the ring really was! Besides, sixty wouldn't make much of a dent in the big moron's funds. He wasn't a nice person anyway, thinking he'd just cheated some poor girl out of three-hundred gold.

Oh, this day was already going wonderfully! Emi had money to spend, and certainly to cover her rent...

---

Oh, she was certainly faithful. And certainly, certainly, she believed in spreading the good word of Reon.

However, Tanya did not understand why she had been assigned to do this. She was a paladin, a warrior meant to clear out evil existences. To destroy wicked and mindless undead, to destroy those who would do unspeakable evil. These things were something that Reon, and her believers, would not tolerate. But... certainly there was someone who didn't specialize in destroying evil who they could get for this? There were plenty of girls around the temple who didn't fight at all, certainly they could handle this duty!

Tanya folded her arms across her chest. The small girl huffed.

"Hmph."

She didn't even know where to start with this. She was in the streets, alone, Helios sheathed at her side. Goldion was... with her armor, which she had not been permitted to bring with her. No, she was simply dressed in the holy robes of Reon, an outfit she had not previously worn outside of the temple. Was Sister Lilette trying to irritate her or something?! She felt awkward in these, too... She preferred her lightly-frilled skirt, her boots, her coat and shirt... it was far easier to move in then the long, flowing form of the holy robes of Reon. The habit just wasn't something she was used to wearing when she actually had to go places. At least she was allowed to keep Helios on her at the moment.

Her bag was filled with pamper, proclaiming that Reon was a wonderful goddess. Of course she was! Why did Tanya have to go around and pass papers that talked about it out?

"And of course, no-one even listens!" she couldn't take it any longer, "All these idiots don't even pay attention, why do I have to be the one who passes these out!? It's not like I'm drawing anyone in!"

The explosion was mostly for her own benefit. She couldn't take standing on the street corner and trying to call to people as they passed any longer, and her frustration had been mounting all day.

---

Ah, today... today was a perfect day! The market district was bustling, they could hardly ignore her stand. Stocked with her array of goods, food, supplies, everything... all for a very reasonable price... Mizuko sat in the shade of her stand, behind the desk. The cloth roof was blue, matching the shade of her eyes and tentacles, and she sat comfortably at her seat with a wide smile. It was... her first real day as a merchant on her own in this country. But the squid beastkin girl was brimming with confidence. She had so many items, at such reasonable prices, there was no way anyone would simply go passing them by without even a second thought. She had prepared herself, and now she was ready.

She just had to get to grabbing her customer's attention.

Mizuko got to her feet, raising a hand, and she called out.

"Wares from the distant land of Akitsushima ~degeso!" she called, waving one hand and several tentacles in the air in a bid to grab the attention of any passersby. Her pronunciation of the common language of this land, while accented, was perfectly clear. "Foods, drink, clothing, supplies, anything you could need ~degeso! All at Aoika Mizuko's...Sorairo..."

Mizuko lowered her tentacles and hands, her voice trailing off as her smile faded into a frown...

While she certainly knew this language, just fine, it... was still hard to remember the name her mother had told her to call it in this language. "Sorairo Ika Ichiba... Okaasan wa iimashita... Oh!"

Mizuko's hand and tentacles shot up once more.

"All at Aoika Mizuko's Sky-Blue Squid Market ~degeso!"

The sun was already at its highest point of the day, but the Ezel's Smithy had yet to receive its first customer. Now this should by no means imply that his crafting lacked skill or experience. But the Artisan's Guild grew more renown, the more clients decided to call on then instead of the small crafters. One of the most crushing blows was when the City Watch took their business to the Guild. Now, most of Ezel's customers are peasants buying farming tools or just repairing old ones. As it was the case for today's laboring, and was is the right word since the job was long done and the only thing keeping Ezel from lunch was the old miner. Who had probably forgot that the pick would be ready before midday.

But today luck seemed to be on his side, before long the miner arrived. "Well chief? Is my tool ready?" He asked from his bent back position. From the back of the smithy Ezel slowly shuffled out through the tools that were hung from the low ceiling. It was a low ceiling for him, just a few inches and he wouldn't be able to stand straight in the 7 foot tall smithy. His low voice grumbled as a minor rock slide as he handed the miner the reforged tool. "Knew I could count on ya..." The miner coughed a few times and spat out a reddish phlegm. "Guess I wont have the chance to break it again" he laughed with a sour look on his face. He opened his light coinpurse but Ezel shook his head and said. "Pay when it breaks, now bugger off..." He had known the man for quite a while and knew his situation, though nothing different from the other poor bastards working the mines, this man was always a loyal customer as his sons and probably his grandsons should the smithy last so long. The man took his leave and Ezel quickly strung up the "BACK AFTER LUNCH" sign and hightailed it to the food stalls. Rumors had it that an exotic stall would open today. Something a gourmand like him would never pass on.

The stall was easy to spot from afar as its blue color stuck out besides all the other dusty shops. He quickly made his way to the stall, well as quick as a rock giant could through the see of people moving about the market. As he drew closer he could hear a feminine voice yell out her wares over tens of others. Now he could also have a better look at the shopkeeper. Most certainly a female but the race was not human. It was a squid of sorts..."Beastkin" he remembered the word. As he reached in front of the stall the only word that left his mouth was a husky "Food..."

To the Coven of Thorns,

It is of the utmost importance that I have called upon your expertise for a rather malicious but justifiable task. An intolerable, wretched oaf of a man by the name of Lucien Balford has shamed my wife and my household, but has slipped past the justice of Karstberg, however he shall not slip past my swift hand I send to strike him. No matter the cost, I want this urchin dealt with as soon as possible in the most lethal method imaginable by the Coven's ill-famed cutthroats. Make sure this swine Balford is never able to lay hands upon anyone's property ever again.

Signed,

Erick Vaughn Lastraad.

The tattered sepia toned parchment had written upon it such fiery language and foul utterances towards the chosen target, and at the bottom where the client had written his name lied the mark that forever sealed Balford's fate, the crimsoned, smeared bloody palm-print to mark the man's untimely demise. Having met with Lastraad beforehand as per-custom within the city's dank and dark catacombs, a secluded and indeed sordid arrangement only illuminated by dim, flickering torchlight, the exchange of coin was made for bloodshed as the return gratitude. Such were the blood-soaked contracts of the Coven, notes left upon a withering, hollow tree of the old cemetery where the ravens perched, their cantankerous caws echoing the arrival of a client to the forbidden grounds soaked with the hatred and agony of dead men festering. There the notes were plucked from the tree as ripened apples dripping with their beautiful nectar, but that nectar indeed held the bite of a serpent's venom, for these were letters unto an evil that forever sealed a man's fate to the grave.

The assassin who handled such dark and grim affairs was Alena. Rolling up the contract, she stuffed it into the crevice of her light and surprisingly flexible armor, emerging from her perch high atop the majestic walled city of Karstberg, as beautiful as the day she first laid eyes upon its towering buttresses, it's magnificent and colorful Dream District, its posh and elegant Noble Quarter. This was a city she was indeed in love with, marveling the view with such lustful eyes as though a groom who looked upon his bride on the night they made solemn vow to love each other till death do they part. But the time for sightseeing and aweing were naught. Alena had a mission, find Balford within the city, kill him, and bring back the blood rose as proof of her sinister endeavors. I, the wings who guide the Angel of Death, take flight. It was the mantra of all the assassins of the Coven, the very same that brutish man with the scar across his face had taught Alena when she first learned to fly as Matthias called it. More-so it was a swift leap from atop the belfry of the hallowed temple and onto the rooftops she sprinted forth, leaping over to the other roof adjacent to her, then another until it seemed the woman was gliding across thin air.

Mizuko blinked as the tall, rocky figure appeared in front of her. Her eyes travelled up the huge form until they arrived at his face. That was... certainly a race she had never seen before. But no matter! She would sell to any paying customers, even if they appeared to be rock formations that had come to life! Though... she didn't know what he would like to eat... Mizuko placed both hands on her counter and smiled happily up at her customer. There was the first step to such things, that had to come before any other steps. Something that Mizuko needed to begin with to be a successful merchant like her parents!

"Hello, valued customer ~degeso!" she began, her tone utterly cheerful and confident. Mizuko would find out exactly what food this guy wanted and sell whatever it is that he wanted at the best price for the both of them! "What kind of food would you like to eat ~degeso?"

Even as her hands rested on the counter, Mizuko's tentacles dove beneath it and began to set out various cases on the counter. It was these that held the food items she could carry pre-prepared, anything that would keep well enough.

As he made his way up the hill, Jace began to wonder if he would ever get to Krastberg. Had he been lied to? Jace never had a good sense of direction, and it wouldn't be surprising if someone had just lied to him to make him go away. His thoughts turned back to the tavern, and the two men he had overheard at the bar.

After looking at the job board at the tavern, Jace was about to pick up a bounty to get some food money when he overheard two men at the bar talking. ‘Yea, Krastberg is a great place if you are looking for money…’ At the mention of money, Jace darted over to the two men. “Krastberg you say” He said with a grin as leaned against the bar. After annoying the men for several minutes, they eventually told him how to get there, but Jace was starting to think he had been tricked. That was until he made his way to the top of the hill and saw a massive wall. “That has got to be it!” Jace said excitedly as he ran down the hill and towards the gate he noticed.

He arrived at the gate with a huff and rested against the wall, catching his breath before going to walk in. He noticed the guards to the right of the gate. He walked over to the station and put his bag on the table.

“Name is Jace Dragov, I am a traveler that has come to look for work” He said to the guards. He was used to this by now, showing up at a big city dressed like he was, he would always get stopped and questioned. The guard looked him up and down before speaking up. “What work have you come to look for?” The man asked as he glanced at the large metal gloves that Jace was wearing. “I have come to sell some things I have found, and will be looking for mercenary work while I am here.” The guard was surprised. Usually mercenary work was frowned upon by the guards in most towns, because mercenaries had a reputation for breaking the rules of the city. “Don’t worry, I have done this before, don’t go against the city laws, and don’t get in the way of the city guard.” Jace said with a reassured smile to the man. The guard looked over to one of the others who nodded at him. He looked back at Jace. “Try not to get into trouble Mr Dragov” He said as he gestured into the city. Jace just smiled and picked up his things before walking through the gate. He had been to many cities in his time and had seen the biggest and best of buildings. They paled in comparison to what Jace saw before him.

“Woooow…” Jace said as he looked up. “That’s awesome…” Being kicked out of his village at a young age, he was not used to seeing big buildings, in fact most nights he would sleep in any tree he could find. He had decided that the first thing he had to do was find the market district. He didn't have enough food for a meal at a tavern or anything, but he could defiantly find some cheap bread to tide him over until he sold what he needed to. After asking for directions, he made his way towards the market district. The area was so busy that he could barely see through the crowd of people. After a few minutes of walking around he noticed a large man at a stall. The man was somewhat strange looking, but what caught Jace’s eye was the food being placed on the counter. He carefully worked his way through the crowd and arrived in front of the stall. He peered around the man and inspected the various foods that were laid out on the table, Jace started to lick his lips. Having eaten the last of his food two days ago, he was starving. He slid his coin pouch out of his pocket and saw a few copper coins inside. Letting out a nervous sigh he glanced back to the food.

“I hope I have enough…” he said to himself as he crouched down behind the massive rock man. He put his hands on his stomach and felt them growl deeply as he waited for his turn to buy from the shop keep, that appeared to be some kind of squid person. Jace had very little knowledge about other species and was often surprised by the people he saw, but he had learnt to contain his surprise, as not to offend potential clients.

Following upon one last tip from the embittered businessman that was Lastraad before he and the assassin had parted ways, Alena continued her swift and hasty stride across the rooftops and the high passages of majestic Karstberg in pursuit of her designated target. According to the angry man and his venomous spouting of utterances towards the dark haired woman with eyes red as blood, the bastard known only as Lucien Balford was a well round drunkard who haunted a tavern in the eastern quarter of the city, Bartelby's Tavern it was known as, the oldest known establishment in Karstberg, founded by Rutherford Bartelby during the second era as a place for traveling merchants and such to grab a nice tankard of his finest ale and a warm bed to rest before making the trek towards the blistering dry deserts of Ahkshribah. Over time unfortunately, the once prestigious reputation of the tavern had been marred, sullied by bare knuckle brawls, sordid characters making sordid deals in the dark behind Karstberg's illustrious law enforcement, revelers, thieves, and cutthroats. Twas now a den of the sinful and the wicked of the city, a place where Alena might expect to find a lowlife such as Balford.

From high atop, she leapt to the city streets below her feet, landing safely and displaying such grace a woman of the hidden blade could exhibit. None could see her beautiful visage though hidden behind the thick scarf that obscured her luscious yet subtle lips and her petite nose and the black hood draped over her head, concealing the rest of her face in infinite shadows, the only feature Alena revealed of her identity were a pair of gleaming red eyes that peered through the darkness unto the other citizens who passed by her without a care or a second glance towards the black clad woman ominously stalking through the crowded streets and back alleys. Despite the reputation of this crime ridden district, the passages of the eastern quarter were rather lax and unguarded, not a single armed guard of the city watch patrolling the area, which only made this task so much easier than the journey from the catacombs to Bartleby's Tavern without catching sight of the nuisances armored in their thick plate and mail, nuisances being they offered no challenge to the woman, so slow and so easy to dispatch.

Alena approached the tavern's door, carefully turning the knob and nudging it open with a subtle creak of the old pinewood, immediately being sucker-punched by the raw stench of old ale and that oft musky odor of well...men, nefarious men at that. Her uninvited intrusion frankly fell unnoticed by Bartleby's many intoxicated occupants since it was drowned by their raucous drunk debauchery and cantankerous merrymaking. Most, if not many of these scruffy and bearded burly few, were sea captains and sailors who made their living upon the vast oceans, either sailing forth merchant and trader ships or fishing the high seas for a plentiful bounty to bring to market. The clanking of their iron tankards and their boastful hearty laughter intermingled with many a sea shanty they bellowed jovially. In all honesty, they were quite the vocalists in Alena's opinion, but the woman was not here to applaud the singing of sailors. Balford, he was here somewhere. It would've been sufficient if Lastraad could've given a better mental picture of this malicious ne'er do well, but the only clue he could give Alena of Balford's identity was he was a fat man with bright red hair, and from Alena's point of view, there were alot of men here who fit that particular description, however thanks to his haggard demeanor, Balford outed himself to his death dealer.

"Bartelby ye old codger! Another round of Ale for me hearties!" There he was, the obese buffoon hollering to the elderly yet still broad barkeep for more booze for him and his comrades, a select few of burly men, shirtless and obscenely immodest but their chests brandished the scars of many a tussle, not to mention a mat of nodded hairs, and some wondered why Alena preferred the company of women over men. "Right away, Balford ye ole sea dog! Aurelia! Take these fine gents their ale! That table over there!" Bartleby handed the tray of tankards, filled to the brim with intoxicating ale, to a rather scraggly young barmaid, a petite figure with dusty blonde hair in a tousled mess around her shoulders, but a face as fair as an angel. I would be damned to ever frequent such a place if I were her. Alena pondered eyeing the lovely young lady, carefully sauntering across the tavern in all her dark cloak and armor towards her, all the while fetching a small vial of an ominous black substance of sorts from the pommel of her dagger sheathed to her side, next to her sword no less. "Ah...pardon me, mademoiselle." She spoke softly to the barmaid, feigning an accidental bumping into of the woman's tray she carried, but no less a faint smile crossing her lips as she saw the drops of dark liquid dissolve into Balford's beverage, along with his mates' drinks for good measure. "I should be more careful next time. Forgive me." Afterwards, before making her exit, she turned at the door to see Balford gulp down his ale.

"URGH!! B-bloody hell!" Immediately his hand grasped his fat neck as he gasped for air and groaned in an infernal storm of agony. Saliva, frothy and red with his own blood, began to seep from the cracked crevices of his mouth, and soon a torrent of red exhumed from his lips and unto the knotty cedar of the table where he sat. His chums soon followed with their own cries of pain and suffering, a commotion it did cause, but before the perpetrator was discovered, she would be long gone from this den of undesirable denizens. Before her departure though, the sly woman jumped at the opportunity to leave a kiss upon the cheek of the barmaiden, "Fare thee well, my lovely." And out the door she was, scaling the high wall next to her and taking to the rooftops again, vanished before the watch soon arrived to investigate this vile account of foul play.

As Emi walked away happily from her latest performance, a figure even more ragged and destitute appearing than herself shuffled out from a corner where it had been huddled and held a chipped and worn begging bowl out toward the girl, clearly having noticed the jangle of money about her person, or depending on how good of a beggar he was, perhaps even having witnessed her earlier transaction to confirm she had money and waited for just this moment to beg.

"Please young miss, even a few bent coppers for a poor old man what can barely walk or see? I promise ya, the rewards for even a small act of kindness are greater than y'know!"

The piteous old man's voice creaked like a door hinge on the verge of a breakdown, and unlike so many other beggars in Karstberg, close examination of both his milky eyes and his lameness-twisted leg would reveal them to be quite physically genuine, though he wrapped himself in a ragged full body cloak as if to conceal such unsightly features, or perhaps because it was normally his only blanket against the chill of colder nights.

What Emi might not know however was that this was no ordinary beggar. Numerous instances of her skilled 'acting' had caught the interest of Lakan Ting, The Prince of Dreams. A famed actor in the city's theatre district, Lakan was also a notorious trickster and dabbler in many events, capable of looking like anyone or anything, or so many a wild and unbelievable rumor claimed. Like many wild and unbelievable rumors, this was almost completely true, though also somewhat explainable. Lakan's constantly shifting appearance was due to a very specific type of foreign magic, and as for being a trickster and a meddler well, Lakan just had a passion for good stories, or so he told himself. He particulary liked stories with happy endings. Naturally, of all the stories he enjoyed, few were as close to his heart as that of the street urchin risen to prominence. He had lived it himself, after all.

"Please miss, just even a single copper. Charity can open gateways t' your dreams y'know!"

Emi threw off her cloak, replacing the hood with a wide-brimmed hat. It was suitable, it shielded her from the harmful rays of the sun and looked stylish on top of that. When she heard the voice calling to her, she slowly turned to face the source. It was... an old man, so ragged and lame... And for a brief moment, the young Nem con artist was taken by pity. However, her mind quickly caught up to her. As a con artist herself, she was always ready to second-guess anything she came across. Who knew if they were another person such as herself? However, on the other hand, if this was a real old man... surely sparing a little money would do no harm? He looked to need all the help he could get.

And so, the girl's thoughts raced until crossing a finish line. Sixty gold... that more then covered anything that she would want, and her rent as well. She could easily spare two gold for this old man. If he was really an old man, it would help him and was far more then what he had asked for. Though truthfully she could spare little more then that. And... if they were a con artist like herself... no harm done, two gold was far less then what she possessed and what she needed.

"I can spare more then that," said Emi with a smile. She reached into her coinpurse and drew out a pare of gold coins, offering them to the man.

Thane was practically flying as he traversed the rooftops of Karstberg, a familiar feeling of contentment in his heart and adrenaline coursing through his veins. Truly there was nothing like the feeling of the crisp breeze and warm sun against one's face on a lovely day such as this one. As the maroon-haired courier neared the edge of the roof of what he believed to be a sort of restaurant, he mentally marked off a point on the next roof over before leaping off the edge.

'Alter Area: Contract.'

For the briefest amount of time, the distance between himself and his desired landing point shortened. It only took a moment for the distance to expand back to its usual state, but it was enough to allow Thane to land without losing too much of his valuable momentum and smoothly transition into free-running stride. Jumping from roof-to-roof might have been an advanced parkour technique, but his choice in magic made it exponentially easier to pull off. Without the momentum loss any regular traceur would take, even! All it took was a mental mark and an incantation of a verbal or mental variety.

After repeating the aforementioned process several times, Thane finally reached his destination. This time, instead of placing a point on another rooftop, he placed it on the ground. 'Alter Area: Contract," he thought for the umpteenth time, allowing him a safe landing as the distance between the peak of his jump and the ground shortened and snapped back into place just like the distance between buildings. Thane took in a few deep breaths as he felt his adrenaline wear off and his exertions catch up to him. 'Time to finish up this delivery,' he thought happily, grinning as he waltzed up to the address he was directed to. Thus, Thane exchanged the package he was carrying in his bag for a decent amount of coin before going on his merry way, along the rooftops of Karstberg once more.

Ezel responded with a mocking military salute to the young woman's greet. He was somewhat in awe as to how nimble her "hair" was. She'd be a real help around the smithy he thought to himself, managing wares and a hammer at a same time. Now that would be a dream...but maybe the heat would damage her. Ezel sighed and disappointingly said "House's special..." He didn't really fear any food, since his rock gut could digest even metal if needed. He took a step to the side to let other possible customers place their order and crossed his arms in wait. There was nothing really that he hated more than waiting for his food to be cooked, but on the other hand he did enjoy a freshly cooked meal. Well there was just one thing...not having enough and at that "Five servings." His husky voice broke out as he suddenly jolted in front of the stall pushing everyone aside. Lunch was the most important meal of the day after all. After which he slowly retreated to his statue position.

The old man grinned at Emi and moved as if to take the coins with an outstretched hand, then suddenly dropped something to the ground that flared in a sudden brilliant flash of light and billowing blue smoke. The aim of the microscopic explosion wasn't to harm the girl, nor would it likely do more than cause her and other passersby to look away for the briefest of seconds even taking into account the con-artist's night-accustomed Nem eyes.

For those briefest of seconds was all Lakan needed to completely transform himself. He tossed off the tightly wrapped and concealing cloak to reveal garments of rich silk interwoven with gold thread in a fashion gaudy enough that it would have been easily mocked were it not prohibitively luxurious. His lame leg repaired itsel and his hunched back was no longer hunched as he grew far healthier looking, in fact becoming a man around forty years younger than he had been. His skin grew darker as did his hair, and the milky quality siphoned away from his now almond-shaped eyes and was replaced with an almost penetrating yet mischieviously twinkling gaze. just as quickly this new face hidden behind a blue and gold mask frozen half in a frown and half in a smile placed with a blur of the actor's hand. This was the closest most people ever came to seeing the true face of Lakan Ting, and he intended to make the experience a notable one.

"I did say that charity can open gateways to your dreams and marvelous rewards, did I not? If you'll listen to me for a few moments I can make good on my promises, though these you may have regardless along with any answers you'd like."

Some time during the change, Lakan had found time to produce a pair of tickets to the theater from one of his sleeves, as well as an additional two gold pieces to the pair Emi had handed him, all of which he held out towards the young con artist.

The rose was delivered as soon as possible and the contract of Erick Vaughn Lastraad had been sealed. Fifteen hundred gold was indeed a high price to pay for the services of a notorious cutthroat, but there were indeed factors, disciplines of the Coven that stood above the common rabble of hired muscular thugs and contracted mercenaries to do such dirty, and often bloody work, and that was precision, finesse, and the utmost importance placed upon secrecy and the shadows. Never once minding the cost of Alena's services however, Lastraad was quite pleased upon hearing the woman's account of how she easily dispatched that loathsome cad Balford to the darkness and horror of Oblivion with just a few simple drops of Mirkwood Serpent venom, a most lethal of concoctions the Earth Mother definitely brewed within the nefarious wretches of the forest, oh how those slender black and yellow spotted snakes have served the Coven so greatly over these years, but enough rambling. The payment was collected and bloodshed was put forth. Now that Balford was out of the picture, Lastraad could continue living his life....until one day if Alena were to collect his.

Bidding farewell to the man, the assassin leaped from the third floor balcony of his prestigious abode in the Noble Quarter and took to her accustomed pathways again, vaulting from rooftop to rooftop. Upon her travels across the high passages of the city, Alena had noticed a rather peculiar sight from the corner of her eye while she was mid-sprint. He was an odd sort of chap, a courier no less Alena could deduce by the boy's leather bag. He too was quite fond of the rooftops and as such, he indeed impressed the woman as he exhibited his skill in the art of parkour, an art form the woman believed to be more akin to the assassins no less, but if it were the preferred method of delivery for these newfangled couriers and delivery boys, then Alena had no problem of the sorts with him. Although when she witnessed the lad utilize some kind of sorcery to ease his travels, that was when she got cocky. Who needed magic to smooth the flow of their strides when you've been steeped in the knowledge of parkour and free running for almost several years? Though she wasn't trying to outdo the boy, Alena quickly changed her course into a wall run across the top of a nearby archway, following that up with a swift vault over to a flagpole where she swung her way over to another, then another before somersaulting onto a rooftop slightly adjacent to where the courier landed. Alena must've been a ghost to the young lad in all her black ardor.

She gave him a curt nod and a bit of a smile, though it was hard to deduce such since her scarf obscured her lips still. Then, she easily made her way down to the surface of the city again, this time landing smoothly in the Market Quarter. Upon setting foot on the dusty grounds, that oh so delectable hint of delicacies caught her by the nostrils and lured her to the many stands and vendors crowded about, the lovely smells of fresh imported cheeses from countries all across the globe, finely crafted wines and spirits, baked breads of so many varieties and the delicious, savory scents of smoked meats and fish hot off the iron. It was all so wonderfully scrumptious to the woman, and she hadn't had that much to eat lately today, having to neglect her breakfast because Matthias brought to her another contract. From one of the stands, she noticed a crowd carooning about. It must've been quite popular the woman assumed, and so she tarried forth looking for a place to sit. Unfortunately for her, the only seat left was next to this rather large and burly lad, skin as hard as hewn stone, in truth the man's skin was stone.

She looked to the young and adorable proprietor of the establishment, a native of Akitsushima she was, easily given away by her slipping dialect and vernacular. Not only that, but Alena could tell easily the cute girl was beastkin of the squid variety. This would usually seem as a turn-off for most that the pretty young lass could use her "hair" in such ways, however it mattered not to the older, debonair woman what she was, all women, no matter of race, were beautiful to her. "A filet of grilled haddock with lemon butter and a bottle of imported sake, if you will mademoiselle." Alena spoke softly setting her gold upon the table for the petite squid girl and slightly lowering her scarf from her mouth so that she could see the woman's inviting smile. Thanks to Lastraad's generous donation from his coin purse, Alena had more than enough to feast.

Amidst the bustle and banter of the market, the faintest of sounds lulled the dark woman's attention. Music, such beautiful melody, from the Dream District no less. Ah and how the woman enjoyed the lovely voice of the singer, accompanied by that graceful and elegant piece composed from the grand piano. The voice...the composition of such lovely demure....it reminded Alena...of her mother....

Mizuko

"... House's... special..."

For a few moments, Mizuko stared blankly. Oh no. She'd... she had ingredients, yes, but there was... kind of no menu written up yet. It may have been a poor assumption, but Mizuko had assumed that orders would be quite a bit more specific until she got a menu written up. The hot plate was heated up, at least, so that wasn't an issue for her. It was now really just a matter of trying to figure out, on the spot, what the house special would even be. Mizuko's mind raced... and then it came to the most obvious conclusion. Of course she would cook the most delicious of meat to be her house special!

"One shrimp-fried rice, coming right up ~degeso!"

The young squid girl swiftly set about pulling open the first container in sight, using her hands for this one. It was cool to the touch, her parents having invested in enchanted containers that would store food without allowing it to spoil. Within, were the familiar curled forms of shrimp tails. She had whole shrimp, as well, but this container was for shrimp tails. As she opened it up, her tentacles moved and placed containers of rice near the hot plate. It was prepared as well, as cooking the rice up was something she had wanted to handle beforehand. A portion was swiftly deposited in a bowl, and placed beside the hotplate, as two of her tentacles produced two eggs from the box beneath the counter. As she cracked them into another bowl to scramble them, her attention turned to the older girl who had arrived at the counter. She could keep preparing the shrimp-fried rice and still pay attention to further customers, she had free tentacles.

A filet of fish? That would be easy enough to prepare alongside the fried rice, and she had plenty of sake. Mizuko smiled. "Of course, valued customer ~degeso! And welcome to Aoika Mizuko's Sky-Blue Squid Market ~degeso!"

She seemed quite nice, as well. Nice and specific in her order, which did make things easier for Mizuko. As the woman moved her scarf down to reveal her smile, Mizuko's own smile grew, and one of her tentacles reached to the back of her stall. This... was the tricky part. The squid girl looked back over her shoulder, still trying to keep up preparation for the fried rice, as her tentacle wrapped around one of her bottles of sake. She didn't want to drop anything... and, slowly, she managed to retrieve the bottle, placing it on the counter. With that done, she quickly produced her cold box of filleted haddock, carefully taking out one of the fillets and inspecting it in her hands before preparing to place it on the hot plate.

And... then she noticed she had yet another customer, peering around the huge, rocky man. "Ah... I'm sorry, I didn't see you there, valued customer ~degeso! What would you like ~degeso?"

Deep down, Mizuko really hoped he wanted something pre-prepared. Or maybe he wanted something other then food...

---

Emi

This... was not quite what Emi had been prepared for. She shielded her eyes from the brilliant flash of light. It did not, at least, burn her eyes and blind her, as such lights often would do to her kind, but it still forced her to look away given how brightly it had burst. When she could return her gaze to the spot... she saw something else she had not expected. The old beggar man had been replaced by a much younger one, a human man in a mask clad in luxurious clothing. There were only a few people such a sight could prove to be, such a swift and excellent disguise. Naturally, he was a rumor, but there were plenty of rumors that did indeed prove to exist...

After a few moments of stunned surprise, Emi managed to find her words.

"So... You're... You're Lakan Ting, aren't you?"

It was the Nem girl's first response after the man finished his speech. Well, that and a stunned 'thank you' as she took the gold pieces and the tickets. She was hardly about to pass that up, and seeing a performance in the Dream District was a fantastic way to spend a night. However, the real surprise was the fact that she really had no idea who this could be, other then the famed man of mystery. "I... I think I'll hear you out. After a performance like that, what else could I do?"

She didn't have anywhere to be immediately, anyway.

A very quiet sniffing could be heard from outside the calamerchant's stall--but something far more obvious indicated that someone had taken interest. It was hard to ignore nine tails fanning out right next to you, after all, and even more so when they were large enough to be attached to a human body. Inevitably, the person they were attached to straightened up--and slumped onto the stall.

"So... hungry..."

If there was one thing that a stowaway was guaranteed to not have, it was a good supply of food. On top of that, Tsubasa had plainly forgotten to gather any funds (not that they would be accepted over here) for her little trip... and here she was, out in the middle of functionally nowhere, incredibly hungry and with no money to pay for food. The smell of her native country's cuisine had attracted the goddess almost immediately.

Ezel, of course, would have to deal with the tails tickling his face. It was rather hard to prevent the full set from bothering anyone.

Jace was a little startled to see a woman walk past him and order something quite extravagant. He let out a sigh as he couldn’t afford something like that. Then he heard the shopkeeper speak up to him.

“Uhh, yes right” Jace said as he moved up close to the counter. “Can I have a loaf of your cheapest bread” He said with a nervous smile. He then saw what looked like a fox woman slump over the counter. He felt a little bit of sympathy, well understanding the burden of being hungry. “Make that two loaves” He said with a smile at the woman. He couldn’t offer much, but this was the best he could do. He had a soft spot for hungry people.

“Oh” He said as he remembered something. “I was also wondering, where do you think I could sell something like this?” As he said this, he pulled a small leather pouch out of his pocket. Pulling softly on the cords, he opened the pouch and removed a gold ring with a lustrous red stone in it. The ring was in the shape of a dragon wrapping its way around the finger, holding the stone in its clawed hand. He had acquired this little beauty on his most recent contract, getting rid of a group of bandits that were terrorising a village he had stumbled across. They didn’t have much money, so they gave him a ring instead. He carefully sat the ring down on the table. “Apparently this is a blood ruby. I need to find somewhere I can sell this thing or I will have to live off of bread for quite a while.” He said with a nervous shrug. Jace always found himself getting scammed out of valuable things so he wanted to make sure he found a reputable place to buy the rings, necklaces, and other various items he had found on his adventures.

My my, this establishment was indeed popular in this beautiful city, for it seemed as soon as Alena had taken her seat next to the gargantuan brute of stone and placed her rather extravagant yet simple order, more customers began to arrive from the get-go, and all of them a very eclectic and diverse few. Quite the oddities some of these few are, but in Karstberg, anything is to be expected. Her lips curled into a rather pleasant smirk as she looked around at all of them. The first to catch her eye of course was the woman with several fluffy, canine-like, tails protruding from her backside, another beastkin native from Akitsushima the woman presumed, and my did she look gorgeous to Alena. She almost found it heavenly to have met such beautiful women today, the lowly barmaid at the tavern, the cute squid girl who owned the restaraunt, and indeed this ravishing fox-woman. All the more it made her smile as she poured some sake into a small cup and partook of her chosen beverage, sweet and heavy on the tongue with enough of a burn to keep you going, just what Alena expected of finely brewed sake from the shores of Akitsushima.

"Traveled far from home, have we, mademoiselle?" She spoke to the definitely fatigued and ragged lifeform, seeing as though the fox woman was unable to keep her head lifted. "You look like you could use a drink, my lovely fox." Generously, Alena took it upon herself to pour some of the delectable sake for the poor woman, no use in letting a beautiful soul like her wither away she thought. While she waited for her fish so eagerly, practically swooning inside from the intoxicating aroma of world famous Akitsushima cuisine wafting into her face from the hot fires of the iron plate her meal was cooked upon, along with a generous portion of fried rice possibly for the man of stones to her left, her eyes fell upon the peculiar young man asking where he could sell his ring for a bit of coin. She watched as he fetched the questioned ring from his pouch, eyeing the marvelous craftsmanship of it, but...something just felt off about the ring. The band was indeed a gold standard of craftsmanship, the ornate and delicate carvings only a master ringsmith could pull off effortlessly, that or a well-trained forgery artist, for the most damning of features had to come from the supposed "Blood Ruby" that crowned the lovely item of jewelry.

"Young sir, if I could see that ring for a moment..." She obliged to inspect the ring further for the lad, at least to save him the disappointment later when he discovered this ring....was a fake.

A ratkin and two undead came walking through the streets in procession. A few people, be they religious or newcomers, stepped aside and frowned or gaped at the spectacle, but most payed no heed. Laborers of the Grey Guild were a common sight in Karstberg after all. Sniggit was out working, but she only had one job today and wasn't in a hurry. Some dead human somewhere in a neighboring district had been mistaken for a non-contracted body and had been buried in a cemetery, so the young collector had been given two laborers to assist with reclaiming the body from the earth. She expected trouble from the clergy of the temple the cemetery belonged to, but all of her papers were in order so she had nothing to fear. If things got bad, as they did sometimes, she'd call the guard and they'd settle it. People were allowed their opinion on the guild she supposed, but the law was the law and the guild usually had it on their side.

She had one errand to take care of before she recovered the body, though. She was going to a local blacksmith, Ezel, to have her dagger sharpened. It had been quite some time since she'd last had it fixed, and it was high time she did something about that. Coming up to his shop she ordered her undead escort to stand back so she could negotiate with the man in peace. Some people were unnerved by the deados. She didn't know if Ezel was one of them, but didn't care to find out either.

"Ezel!" she hollered, "You there? Sniggit here, need dagger sharp-sharp! You take care of while I go business, get coin when I return. Yesno?"

As Mizuko smiled at her customers and continued her preparation of the fried rice(it wouldn't be too long now!) she was really quite surprised to see the arrival of what was undeniably a nine-tailed fox. Another Akitsushiman native? She didn't think many from her home country were around here at all! It was almost shocking to see such a person stroll out of the unfamiliar crowds... But it was also rather nice. Still, a nine-tailed kitsune... her kind was rare even back home! "Ah... hello! it's nice to see someone from my homeland here ~degeso! Genki desu ka ~degeso?"

It was simply asking 'How are you?', of course. Mizuko would stick to this land's language for the most part.

However, she... had to address every customer. This was really kind of overwhelming! The man asked for two slices of bread, and, well... her free tentacles groped about for bread and quickly produced two loaves. "That will be one copper ea-Oh, the fish ~degeso!"

The fish hadn't needed much to perfectly cook. The fried rice was taking longer, likely because it required more preparation, but it wouldn't be much more time until it was done as well. Rushing to plate the fish and keep tabs on the shrimp-fried rice and the new customers was... not the easiest thing Mizuko had ever done, but soon the fish was properly on the plate.

"I... I'm glad to see you're enjoying the sake ~degeso," said Mizuko with a slightly-strained smile. She was happy, but... she hadn't quite been prepared for so many customers at once. "Your haddock is ready ~degeso!"

"What to do, what to do...?" the red courier mused as he dangled his legs off the edge of some building, watching the hustle and bustle of midday Karstberg going on in the streets below him. He was breathing rather deeply, and sweating a significant amount more than he usually would have after a leisurely run through his usual pathways of choice. There was a simple reason for that, and it was because of a rather short but spurring encounter he had earlier.

Previously, Thane had been traversing the heights of Karstberg, using his usual magically augmented free-running style for a more show-offy method of going from A to B rather than his usual straightforward work routine, when he noticed a black-clad figure on a rooftop adjacent to his position. The figure was undoubtedly female though the wardrobe made it a bit difficult to discern at first. Normally, the courier would've paid someone like that no mind, but this one was also a skilled practitioner of parkour if what he saw was indeed not magically assisted like his own. The two noted each other's presence, her with a nod and a facial movement of some sort - a smile maybe? - and him with a tip of the hat and a smile of his own, before going off on their separate ways, hers to the Market District and himself to... Wherever. He had yet to set a destination for himself. Though that was unimportant. What was, was that the woman from earlier had inspired Thane to try free-running without utilizing his magic. He was good even without it, but he soon realized that his some of his skills had atrophied due to reliance on using magic to smooth things out. Shame really, but now that he knew about it, he could - just did - try to fix it.

But not now, Thane was almost out of energy. He removed the apple that he normally kept in his bag and began to consume the thing. Once that was done with, he dropped down, using his magic to give him a safe landing like earlier, before noting a diminutive lady in some religious-looking garb having a temper tantrum on the adjacent street corner. Normally he wouldn't be staring impolitely as he was, but his self control was being overwhelmed by the lack of energy.

Ysabelle Hajna - An alley somewhere!

Sometimes it was nice to wake up early.

Sure, it wasn't exactly early for most people, but for someone with Ysabelle's sleep patterns this was the equivalent to getting up before the sun rose. Speaking of the sun, it wasn't exactly healthy for someone with her... Condition, shall we say, to stay out in the sun too long, even with her parasol blocking out most of the daystar's harmful rays, so she'd mostly been sticking to places with lots of shade. Alleyways were always a good place to go at this hour, even though they often contained some of the more undesirable element of the city. Of course, if anyone tried to accost her she was more than capable of defending herself...

"Oh my, what do we have here?" Ysabelle chuckled as she saw Tanya, the tiny paladin throwing a tantrum as she passed by. She recognized the robes as those of the Church of Reon, but... Such an easily angered young maiden would be so much fun to mess with, so she couldn't help but say...

"Ah, I see!" She said, eyeing the girl's robes before pointing her parasol dramatically at her. "You're a little short for a streetwalker, aren't you? But I suppose everyone has to make ends meet somehow... Is the getup supposed to make such a short, flatchested hooker more popular? I've heard that the priestesses of Reon are a common fantasy amongst the lower class, after all..."

Thane's entrance hadn't gone unnoticed by her. In fact, she may have been saying such things to Tanya solely because she knew someone was near enough to overhear her. It would be most amusing to see both of their reactions, yes indeed.