The lady on duty at the reception of the boarding house barely looks up from where she is sitting and chatting with one of the neighbors, as I return at long last. Just as well.

The less attention I draw the better. I can't even bring myself to pay too much attention to their chatter while passing them. A casual wave as a greeting will have to do.

I climb the stairs and count the doors until I'm in front of my own room again. The key fits and a quick glance reassures me that everything is as I left it. I don't waste any time either and drop the rest of my things too, to prepare my bedding, if you can call it that, the best I can. Tomorrow, I resolve, I'll sleep at the adventurers' guild in a real bed. Right now I have to make do with my pack for a pillow and my cloak for a blanket though. Eventually I close my eyes and fall asleep, all idle thoughts of beds and other comforts forgotten for now.

Morning comes around sooner than usual. Or at least I wake sooner than usual. Possibly because I turned in early for a change? In the end it doesn't really matter. The city is still asleep, quiet all around. I on the other hand am awake and almost too well rested.

[*Ding!* You slept. Not bad, but not terribly well either! Health increased by 0! Mana increased by 1!]

I certainly won't be falling back asleep anytime soon. With a sigh I get up to take a quick peek out the window.

It's still dark. The stars have barely begun to fade and the sky has yet to lighten noticeably. In theory this would be the perfect time for some mischief or surprise attacks.

I don't have any plans for either though. Well, not exactly. I mentioned paying Fox a visit at the hidden shrine in the temple's tower. At this hour that will require a rooftop run. I guess that does count as a bit of mischief at least. I stretch, making some joints crack, and yawn mightily. It's no use to wait any longer, I better get to it. Thus I gather up my sparse belongings and get going.

After dropping off the key with the landlady at the front door I start to make my way through the still mostly empty streets without any hurry. I'm headed to one of the better spots to cross over the wall I'm already aware off since I don't feel like experimenting right now.

Riverrun really is quieter this time of the day or rather night. Even the places that are open all night tend not to be quite as busy just before dawn. Overall this works nicely in my favor.

A short wait to let a patrol pass and a quick climb later I'm atop the wall and once more my [Climbing] skill benefits. I don't dwell on it and take off at a proper run instead, to cross the remaining distance to the temple at the heart of the city, which in turn helps improve both my [Running] and [Jumping] skills a little. There is no level up notice, but that's alright. I can wait. As long as I don't stop making progress overall all is right or at least on the right track. That's good enough.

My run isn't a headless one though. I still take care to step lightly, to not to loosen any shingles or the like and to avoid notice from the night watch patrols still out on the streets below. Eventually I slip into the small tower chamber with Fox's shrine unnoticed, which in turn earns me a little progress for my [Stealth] skill. Good, that one has some catching up to do anyway.

The place is empty, as usual. And, as usual too, it's neat and clean.

It makes me wonder if someone comes up here to tidy the place up or if the divine do take care of that themselves. I'm pretty sure there is cleaning personnel for the main temple down below. Up here though, no clue? The thought makes me chuckle, but I don't let it slow me down. I fish a penny from my purse and drop it into the offering box at the feet of Fox's statue. My [Sacrifice] skill improves a little and a notification delivered via divine whisper promptly follows.

[*Ding!* Your Karma increased by 1!]

So far so good. Now comes the tricky part. Well, the trickier part anyway. I have to catch the attention of my divine patron.

"Hello Fox, it's me again. We might have another little bit of trouble brewing in town and I was wondering if you could share your opinion on it. It seems Raccoon is trying to set up shop here in Riverrun. Her followers aren't too bad at a glance. What really troubles me is that they are working with the city guard."

My answer is not a distant whisper, but a little growl from right besides me, where Fox has manifested in one of her many shapes. One moment she is a little arctic fox, almost snow white and very fluffy, the next she is a young boy with fox tails, I can't quite count them as they keep swishing about, juggling coins.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"It rubs me the wrong way too. But I usually try not to start any all out brawls with Raccoon. They are pretty fierce."

The young boy becomes a much more mature woman that makes the coins disappear into her purse.

"But if the local guard is in league with them, or if they are in league with the guard, a lesson needs to be taught. Do try to frame them in each others eyes though. Or at least frame someone else, if you happen to know someone else you think is deserving of divine wrath. It will save you trouble. Lots of it."

Fox leans in close and starts sniffing.

My brow furrows, but before I can say anything Fox speaks up again.

"Crab pot. A pretty good one too. You know, I accept offerings other than coin. In fact I very much appreciate good food."

She winks at me and disappears, fragmenting into quickly fading sparkles.

That is that. I guess I have the answers I wanted. Even better though, a divine whisper in the voice of Fox tickles the back of my mind even as her manifested avatar fades.

[*Ding!* Your skill Prayer has leveled up to level 5!]

Another very welcome notification. Thank you very much. I straighten up and sigh, before I mutter to myself.

"Good food, huh? Well, I'll see what I can do."

It might be harder than it sounds. Somehow I doubt any of the local eateries do deliveries. Not usually anyway. Not even to the temple. Even less so to a hidden shrine inaccessible to most people. I'll probably have to get any tasty treats and bring them here myself. It's not an urgent matter though. It can wait for another day.

I leave the shrine once more, but I don't leave the temple's roof right away. Instead I sit down with my back to the tower and watch the stars fade and the sky brighten as the sun comes up at last. It's a pretty sight after all, one well worth spending a few moments so I can properly enjoy it.

The early morning hours are just as well suited to returning to street level after all. The rays of the sun come in low and bright, blinding any observer watching the rooftops and the back alley themselves, in between the four or five story buildings of the inner city, are still plenty dark enough.

My return to the city's streets, not fast, but slow, methodical and most importantly quiet and unobserved, earns me a little more progress for my [Stealth] skill. Overall it's a pretty good start for the day, thus I hum a happy little tune while sauntering through the awakening inner city in the direction of the adventurers' guild.

I come to the realization that this time of the day might just be the best suited for me. It seems the night watch isn't out and about anymore while the city guard isn't patrolling the streets yet. There aren't a whole lot of other people either and those I come across look like they'd much rather still be in bed. It's something I'd do well to remember, as the notification I receive suggests.

[*Ding!* Your skill Streetwise has leveled up to level 7!]

Another little bit of progress for my scoundrel class. The day just keeps getting better. I hope it stays that way. Who knows, maybe I'll really find a nice and juicy quest I can do without leaving town at the adventurers' guildhall? I mean, it's possible, right?

Along the way I make sure that my guild tag is easily visible well before I reach the guild hall at the market place. It's here where the district inside the wall is already busiest. The locals are already setting up their stalls to get a head start on anyone who has to come in through the gate. Pretty crafty. I barely spare their stalls a glance anyway. I'm not here for shopping after all. I'm only passing through.

The interior of the guildhall is, not surprisingly, a little more busy already. Especially the space in front of the quest board is crowded despite the early hour. Or rather it's crowded because of the early hour? It's only natural for adventurers to get jobs they want to get done today as soon as they can to get an early start after all.

The cleric dealing with quests at the counter is pretty busy too and so is the lady serving drinks at the bar. Well, at least it's apparently not hard drinks people are getting for a quick liquid breakfast.

I ignore the bar for now, although I might help myself to a quick snack elsewhere a little later. First and foremost my attention is focused on getting a good quest.

That on its own is already quite a task. On one hand not every quest is suited to my needs. On the other hand I'm not the only one looking for work right now. Thus, even if there is something that would meet my criteria, it could be snatched away right in front of my nose. And adventurers are a little competitive too, even if they try to keep it to a level that doesn't result in any hard feelings.

I focus one the easier quests. The ones that don't require a well established group or a group at all to complete. That already reduces the number of options considerably, but I don't let it dishearten me.

There are no requests from lady Izolda or Justyna, which is too bad. A day spent at the keep would have suited me just fine. Well, it can't be helped. I just keep searching.

The request for fresh rock Crabs is still there. I now know why too. I could do it, in theory, if I were to hurry and if I were to bring someone else along to help me carry the beasts back. On my own though? Not a chance.

Finally I find something. It's not glorious. It won't make me rich. It's not terribly demanding either though. Riverrun's old lord wants a new granary built and the architect responsible for the project is looking to hire more workers even before the actual construction starts. It's about burning enough bricks beforehand.

They pay by the day. Five pennies doesn't sound like much, but the contract includes a meal as well. There is that. And if I decide to quit after today or tomorrow, the request will probably go back on the board until someone else picks it up.

I grab the sheet off the board before anyone else can and head to the counter with it. There is one question prominent on my mind though. Why would they look for workers here? They probably could hire two for five pennies down at either waterfront. There is something I don't know about yet for sure.

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