VI

The following morning the group feasted on fruits grown in the area. They were far sweeter and even more tart than Yoreno was used to.

“All right,” he said, “I’m heading to the adventurer’s guild to find out if there’s any hint of Dantera’s whereabouts.

“I’m coming,” Dell said.

“All right.”

Together the two adventurers left the inn and walked through the streets. They were mostly dirt, but were lined with square stones. Easy to walk or ride on, they carried a lot of dust, and Yoreno was certain that when it rained, they became muddy.

If it ever rained there, he thought.

The streets had plenty of residents and visitors, and now that the sun was up, shops and food stalls were opening. It would be a good idea to buy provisions for their store of supplies before they left Shunavar.

But first they needed to find their next clue.

“Well,” Dellwyn said. “Here it is. The adventurer’s guild of Shunavar.”

Yoreno glanced up at the painted sword and shield and the colorful murals on the face of the building. It had an almost gamely or friendly feel to it. Perhaps there were cultural reasons for the aesthetic designs?

They went inside and found a large post-it board with quests and other requests. On the wall were monster trophies, mostly tusks, teeth, and even some weapons.

The higher thinking monsters often had weapons, sometimes of human or demihuman origin, but often they crafted their own, sometimes as simple as a wooden club with teeth attached or as complicated as an intricately embossed blade.

They perused the post-it board of quests.

“I don’t see anything in her handwriting,” Dell said after a moment.

“No…” Yoreno said distractedly as he scanned the post-its. “I don’t either.”

“But why would she post a quest anyway?”

Yoreno shrugged. “No reason, but you never know the circumstances a person can fall into. Best to be thorough.”

Dell nodded.

Just then a cat eye with leather armor and a double handed broad axe walked up beside them and muttered something in his raspy voice, but the language was not familiar to Yoreno, so he said nothing. Having finished with the board, he stepped away from the adventurer and went to the front desk.

“Hello,” he said.

The man behind the counter had black skin—something Yoreno had only seen a handful of times in Haven, and only once or twice in Aevalin.

The guild man nodded with a grunt.

“I’m looking for someone.”

“Quest board,” he said with a dismissive wave of his hand.

“That’s of no help.”

“Yoreno,” Dell said quietly. “Try a bribe.”

That was right, he thought. He pulled out his coin purse and dropped a silver coin on the counter. Suddenly the guild man’s demeanor changed. “Who are you looking for?”

His accent was thick and slightly hard to understand, but Yoreno understood enough to communicate with him.

“I—we—are looking for someone. A woman, from Aevalin. She may have passed through the town.”

The guildsman thought for a moment. “Golden hair? Blue eyes?”

“Yes!” Yoreno said. “Her. Where is she?”

“Don’t know.”

Dammit!

“But…” the guildsman said. “Yarsha might know.”

“Why?” Dell said. “And who is this ‘Yarsha’?”

“He is an adventurer. He comes to Shunavar often. He went up into the mountains with the woman you seek.”

“When?” Yoreno asked. “Where?”

“In the North Pass up toward the Kilik Dungeon.”

“And did she—“

“No,” the guildsman said. “I have no more to tell you. One silver only buys so much, yes?”

Yoreno raised an eyebrow. He had plenty of silvers, but this man had already told him enough. With a nod he stepped away. After they took several steps toward the rough wooden doors Dell exclaimed in an excited whisper, “We found her!”

“If she’s still up there,” Yoreno said evening, though he noted his heart rate had increased. “North Pass. Kilik Dungeon.”

Before leaving, Yoreno asked for a map. He paid for it, probably more than was necessary, but he didn’t have time to barter and haggle with a man who knew he had money.

“Come on!” Yoreno said. “Let’s go back and tell the others.”