(Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 12)

[DracoOmega]

>Let's head for that inn.

>You turn and head for the inn - the Golden Hearth, by name. Unsurprisingly, the hearth is not actually golden or even particularly noteworthy, though it does actually exist. It lacks the warmly familial vibe of Minoriko's completely, but isn't really worse than many you've seen in Braston.
>You recognize one of your fellow travellers who somehow arrived here ahead of you; a pretty redhead with freckles and a colorful scarf. You never spoke. The rest of the patrons are divided fairly evenly between couples having a late supper and singles mulling over tall ales. One corner of the establishment is rather loud.

[Hello Purvis]

>Spare a glance toward the loud corner while heading for the bar if there is one. If there's not, an empty table will do.

[Oldmansour]

>Update: How much money do we have counting our unexpected profits from the ship?

[DracoOmega]

>Spare a glance toward the loud corner while heading for the bar if there is one. If there's not, an empty table will do.

>If you had to guess, the loudest corner presently correlates with the highest blood-alcohol concentration in the room, but at least the gathering there seems friendly. A toast of tankards sends ale sloshing on the floor to the amusement of all assembled save the waitress.

>You walk up to the bar and the woman tending it turns around on cue.
>"What'll it be?" she asks.

>Update: How much money do we have counting our unexpected profits from the ship?

>Subtracting the food you actually payed for with your own money, you have made a 28 and a half guilder profit on the trip. Not bad, considering.

[Hello Purvis]

>"Couple questions. First, do you have rooms to rent, and for how much?"
>What time of day is it?

[Oldmansour]

>Total funds.
>Scratch that. Inventory. It's been a while.

[DracoOmega]

>"Couple questions. First, do you have rooms to rent, and for how much?"
>What time of day is it?

>The woman nods. "Sure we do! And it's 40 guilders."
>Probably sometime between 9 and 10 in the evening.

>Total funds.
>Scratch that. Inventory. It's been a while.

>Kumokirimaru (worn at side)
>Prism Pendant (around neck)
>Seeker's Badge (pinned to chest)
>307 Val Razuan guilders
>Compass
>Traveling pack
>Traveling rations
>Canteen (filled with water)
>Lockpicks
>4 kunai
>Picture of Sokrates
>Fuwafuwa Heart Droplet
>Antique Val Razuan 1 guilder coin
>Dowsing rods
>Tie-dyed umbrella
>Spool of baling twine
>Bottle of Kumokirimaru-imbued medicine
>Empty sachet
>List of physicians' contact addresses
>Neu's note
>Pencil
>100 feet of rope
>2 glowsticks
>2 torches
>Small heatstone
>Basic grappling hook
>Blue ribbon
>Two spare outfits (one somewhat damaged)
>Piece of peppermint-raspberry chewing gum
>Recipe for Athran's Vigor
>Potted Bittercress
>Chitsuki Ukizaki's business card

[Hello Purvis]

>Nod.
>"I'd like one, please. Does it come with breakfast?"
>Once answered, ask, "Next, can you tell me about some people here?"

[Oldmansour]

>Are we impeded by nighttime conditions when traveling?

[DracoOmega]

>Nod.
>"I'd like one, please. Does it come with breakfast?"
>Once answered, ask, "Next, can you tell me about some people here?"

>"It does if you pay for it," she quips, then snickers a little too enthusiastically at her own joke.
>"Name's Jessica, but you can call me Jess. Been serving drinks for half my life and probably still be at it for the other half." She grins. "That count for one?"

>Are we impeded by nighttime conditions when traveling?

>Your night vision is good and there's a clear moon out; you shouldn't have any difficulty getting around, aside from maybe some extremely well-foliated areas.

[Oldmansour]

If we can save the money, more's the better.
On the other hand, we need to get more info before we go hiking, and that might take some time.

>How tired are we?

[DracoOmega]

>How tired are we?

>It's been an unexpectedly busy day and you've felt a little weary from the start, but you fear that bit isn't going to improve much come morning. You've got a few good hours left in you yet, at the very least, and probably a couple more if you need them.

[Oldmansour]

>Oh yeah, how's our plant doing?

[DracoOmega]

>Oh yeah, how's our plant doing?

>It's tucked away neatly in your pack at the moment to save your arms from carrying it all the time, but it looked about the same when you grabbed it from your cabin as it always has.

[Hello Purvis]

We most def want to gather info.

>"Heh, sounds like I came to the right person. What I'm looking for are hunters. Map makers. Folks who go out into the wilderness for ages at a time, you know what I mean?"

[DracoOmega]

>"Heh, sounds like I came to the right person. What I'm looking for are hunters. Map makers. Folks who go out into the wilderness for ages at a time, you know what I mean?"

>"Got a few hunters around here," she nods, then rises on her toes and leans forward. "Hey, Mac!" she calls out sharply. "Got a missy here wants to talk to you!"
>Man, the woman's got some oomph in that voice; tact and subtly leaves something to be desired though.

[Hello Purvis]

>Oh well. Look toward Mac.

[Oldmansour]

>Watch out for Doc Louis.

[DracoOmega]

>Oh well. Look toward Mac.

>You turn around to follow the barkeeper's gaze, lagging long behind her voice. Where it lands is unclear at first, as there are a half-dozen people in that direction and at least three of them might be a Mac. The guy furthest from the bar looks like more of a librarian than a hunter, though - wispy and near-sighted and more interested in the stack of papers in front of him than his meal. Only one of the others seems to be looking in your direction, a balding heavy-set man with a powerful mustache that seems to have been wrought from steel wool. Well, you suppose he looks capable enough.
>Then a blond-haired woman in front of him throws you briny look, one eye appraising you from head to foot. She takes a swig from a tall wooden tankard and stands up.
>"Yeah, what about?"

>Watch out for Doc Louis.

Dimly, you hear an argument coming from outside. Something about a... bicycle?

[Hello Purvis]

>"Want to ask you some questions about the region, if you have the time."

[DracoOmega]

>"Want to ask you some questions about the region, if you have the time."

>She mulls this over for a second. "Yeah, 'spose I do." She gestures coarsely towards her table. "C'mere, have a seat."
>"Want me to toss a drink your way, too?" Jessica asks.

[Hello Purvis]

>"Just some water for now. Harder stuff goes right through me, you know."
>Go have a seat with Mac.

[DracoOmega]

>"Just some water for now. Harder stuff goes right through me, you know."
>Go have a seat with Mac.

>Jess grimaces. "Poor sod." She turns to fetch a glass from the shelf behind her.
>You go and sit down across from this Mac character. She settles back into her seat with a heavy sag and takes another swig of ale. It wasn't obvious at first, but there is a leanly muscled look to her frame, though her features are somewhat coarse. Her hair is tied in a tight, functional braid, and there's just enough of a glaze about her eyes to suggest this isn't her first drink of the night. She seems content to wait for you to speak.

[Oldmansour]

>What's our stance on ale swilling?
>"Thanks for seeing me, first off. I'm called Nazrin."

[DracoOmega]

>What's our stance on ale swilling?
>"Thanks for seeing me, first off. I'm called Nazrin."

>Mostly you don't think it tastes very good, though you've not sampled it often; as a rule, you tend not to drink very much. Last night... you're still not wholly sure why you did that.
>The woman nods curtly. "You can call me Gwen. Or you can call me Mac. Same difference, mostly."

[Oldmansour]

>Nod.
>Flick our tail back towards Jess. "I understand you're a hunter by trade?"

[DracoOmega]

>Nod.
>Flick our tail back towards Jess. "I understand you're a hunter by trade?"

>Gwen's eyes follow your tail for a moment, then she gives a half shrug. "Sometimes."

[Oldmansour]

>"And how long have you been hunting around here?"
>Come to think of it, did we ever get a proper sense for how long Yuuka's been around these parts?

[DracoOmega]

>"And how long have you been hunting around here?"
>Come to think of it, did we ever get a proper sense for how long Yuuka's been around these parts?

>"'bout 15 years, give or take," she says, tossing back another swig of ale. "What's it to ya?"
>It's hard to tell. Dai, at least, seemed to think her sisters had explored the area the garden was located before there was actually a garden there, but fairies' perception of time is notoriously unreliable and their lifespans long. It's probably not ancient, but it could be a couple years or it could be a century - you really aren't sure.

[Oldmansour]

>"There's a certain youkai I'm looking for, she's supposed to live somewhere in the wilderness around these parts. But no one I talked to back in the city seemed to know more than 'down here, somewhere.' So I was hoping to find someone a bit more familiar with the area than that."