Carver saw the sword come out in slow motion, but its arc was complete before he had time to shout a warning. Blood had been spilled - there could be no doubt that the barkeep was deserving of punishment.
But... not today. Not with the gnome, and the girl, and an already injured friend. Certainly not with the rest of the crowd, who seemed like they might choose the side of the local swindler over the foreign knight.
The bearded man grabbed Separ, attempting to pull hims back and call for a retreat. The idea was a sound one.
Carver spoke, not breaking eye contact with the barkeep. "This villain will face a judgement, friends - of his own making. A life lived in adversity to the right can have no other outcome. But perhaps now is not the time." He looked across the room, making eye contact with each of the strangers - the gnome, the scarred half-elf, the girl, the bearded man, the injured adventurer, even the woman with the air of evil about her who had tried to soothe tensions. "Let us leave, for now. The sun is too high for bloodshed."
The words burned Carver's heart as he said them, but they were true. He promised himself that he would see this man punished one day, but for now he hoped the strangers would take his words to heart.