Hogger Bar

The food Nia ordered didn't take long to order, a small plate of meat with salt and pepper sprinkled on top. If there was one thing good about the city is that the flow of goods from the capital meant there was no lack in more unique items. Even with the spices however she didn't taste much, only sitting in silence as she ate her meal.

To her displeasure someone sat in front of her, their attire almost matching. The grip on her spear tightened, irritation at the failure to detect the person who approached her. Unlike Nia not even their face was visible, a white mask concealing everything except their blue eyes. The black cloak they wore was similar to Nia's but didn't appear to be made out of any unique resource.

Nia was happy inside however to know that the person in front of her was weak. Even if they had a hidden crossbow or some daggers, Nia was confident that she could defeat whatever assassin or informant this was. She knew however the person was here to talk, and not to fight, so Nia abstained from making any fast actions.

"Who was the man in charge of the slave market here?"

The person spoke with a voice Nia didn't seem to be able to understand. It was as if multiple voices were mixed together, making it impossible for her to tell even if she met the person in a more open situation to tell their identity. It was clear to Nia it was an artifact that was making the person speak in such a way, making it apparent that whoever the person in front of her was, they worked for someone big.

"Better question, who the fuck are you?"

Even if Nia wanted to avoid a fight, that didn't mean she wasn't going to show hostility. Making more enemies would only slow her down, and Nia wasn't in the mood to play hero. Her grip increased in strength, beginning to turn her knuckles white as she prepared for a fight.

"I work with Gallow."

The person in front of her didn't respond to the provocations, instead reacted as if nothing was happening. Even if he was loyal to the Gallow family, Nia wasn't happy to be unable to move without a tail. The fact that she failed to not only detect his entry, but also him following Nia throughout the city made her mood even worse.

She trusts the Gallow family, yet for someone who lost their entire family in one day, even that trust was full of suspicion. The only reason why Nia didn't try to force more information out of Gallow in the first place wasn't out of love or admiration, but because cutting off a fruit before it fully grew was a poor move.

"A man named Hertho, although the butler that works for him is more interesting."

Nia spoke slowly, not making any attempt to conceal her aggressiveness. One thing this confrontation told Nia about was that the Gallow family was doing better than she expected, considering the fact that they've been trapped in Trowan for two years. A part of her suspected that Gallow was involved with some more profitable underground businesses, yet she lacked any real foundation to these suspicions.

She lacked the resources and power to fight against a giant like the Gallow family anyways, so to her disdain Nia only had the choice of playing along with whatever game Iris was cooking up. Nia wouldn't sit idly by however if Iris pushed her power onto her, and even if she couldn't guarantee the end of the Gallow family, Nia would make it hurt.

"A butler? It wasn't from the Berry family that's for certain."

The informant spoke with the same confusing voice as he lightly tapped the table, barely making a single noise. Nia didn't care for what was going on in the individual's mind however, instead she rose up from the table with a frown on her face, eager to conclude the conversation.

"Wait, there's a point of interest Iris wants you to look into."

Before Nia could make a move however the informant spoke out, his voice seemingly loud to Nia but it was not garnering any attention from the others in the restaurant. The existence of the artifact controlling the conversation only continued to sour Nia's mood, which was a shock to Nia herself at how angry she was getting.

"Tsk, where?"

Nia didn't sit back down, instead her deep red eyes stared down at Gallows agent with immense bloodlust behind it. Nia was using her bloodlust however to conceal her silent observations of them, trying to identify where the artifact is. She was no Runeweaver, yet the years in the forest and countless years in training had made her sensitive to even the slightest of runes, giving her an upper-hand when dealing with those who wielded artifacts.

She initially thought it was the mask, but like many others it was highly likely the mask was meant to draw her attention away. Instead she felt a slight discomfort when it came to his neck, the second place she expected it to be. To her pleasure that was the only artifact on the individual, yet her paranoia didn't remove the possibility of the cloak somehow concealing more from her.

"Hogger Bar, we know it's associated with the slave merchants yet it wasn't on the security request to the adventurer guild."

"Doesn't that just mean it's useless?"

Nia was quick to shoot down the request with her own question. Every second she spent speaking with this person only made her feel more annoyed.

"No, we've seen higher level members and people of interest entering the bar."

As if expecting the question, the cloaked figure's response was swift. The sound of people speaking louder and louder about the two cloaked figures discussing what they could only assume was some illegal matter was beginning to sound out throughout the restaurant. With this the cloaked figure abruptly stood up, his height only slightly shorter than Nia.

At his swift movements Nia took a step back and held her spear slightly higher, prepared for a fight. It was clear that the opponent had no intention of fighting, yet that didn't mean Nia was willing to leave everything as is.

"So why must I investigate?"

It was clear to her that the person in front even if they didn't conceal themselves would be plenty qualified to gather the information. Adding to the fact that they knew more about the target compared to Nia, the last piece of the puzzle didn't add up for Nia.

"Because it's likely to get messy, you should be able to tell that I'm not fit to fight my way to gather information."

Even with the mask covering his mouth, Nia could tell from his eyes that a smirk was on his face. Nia found herself in a stupor at his words, irritated at being tricked in such a way that she knew that there was no other choice but to go to the target, yet at the same time a deep sense of happiness was beginning to form on the inside. If there was one thing she knew about herself that was wrong, it was that she took pleasure in the hunt, even if she didn't show in on the outside.

By the time she got her thoughts straight, the informant was already out of the restaurant, leading her to stomp her foot on the ground, the heavy boot she wore creating a dent in the wood below. Everyone had turned to her when they heard the noise, yet Nia paid it no mind as she left 20 silver coins on the table as she left the building.

Outside she saw that the sun hadn't even reached the midday point, the conversations throughout the day barely eating away at time. She knew that even if she tried to trick or find the tail Gallow placed on her, it would likely be a fruitless effort. A light sigh exited her mouth as Nia tried to calm her ever growing fury as she headed to where Rein was located, unwilling yet ready to investigate Hoggers Bar.

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The moment Nia arrived at the entrance to the bar she could already tell trouble was about to occur. The building was abnormally large for just a bar, its size of much higher scale compared to those in the area. The thing that made it clear however that there would be trouble is the constant shouting she could hear behind it, even the sound of a table getting slammed every once in a while.

It was only just the middle of the day yet somehow the bar had turned into a chaotic state often comparable to happy hours. Nia wondered a little if the informant was speaking the truth, yet she saw little way out of the situation. Even if they lied about the bar being a meetup point for prominent slave market leaders, there was no way someone could have detected her association to the Gallow family.

Instead of being stuck up on useless thoughts, Nia merely moved forward, pushing the door which showed signs of being slammed open multiple times. The inside was just as bad as she had expected, the smell of alcohol all throughout the air. There were countless holes in the floor, many broken tables and what seemed to be vomit stains everywhere.

Nia was comfortable with living in poor conditions, an aspect she gained after some rough times in Misty forest during her first year there, yet even she couldn't help but question how people enjoyed such an environment. No-one paid any attention to her entry which was one thing that pleased her, however she doubted that would remain the case as just like with the Adventurer Guild trouble was likely to arise.

The only part of the building that was still in good condition was the main bar, a long well managed border between where the chaos was and the drinks. On the other side she saw what looked to be a retired fighter of some sort, not so old that age had destroyed his fighting abilities yet old enough that there would be lasting consequences if he did.

A smile was on the man's face, despite the shouts and screams all throughout the building, whether it was out of happiness towards the liveliness or the love for the job Nia didn't know. His build was that of a professional, a small beard on his face with brown messy hair on his head, a few gray streaks visible in it.

He stood close to the counter with a cup and cloth in hand, giving what remained of the last person's drink a good clean before reusing it. Unlike nobility who often had the money to afford glass or crystal cups, the bar had primarily wooden cups and plates, the smell of meat notifying Nia of more than just drinks being served.

Nia moved silently towards the counter where the server was, avoiding the many holes or brawls happening throughout the building. One thing she noticed was that despite the outside noise hinting at the idea of massive amounts of hatred and anger throughout the building, it was clear that even the most serious of fights were done with laughs and pleasure.

The shouting of chants and bets being placed also gave a strong sense of comradery through combat in the building. As she moved throughout the crowd however Nia could make out that at the far side of the room seemingly concealed by the chaos, a stairway leading into what she presumed was a basement was visible.

This wouldn't be alarming to Nia as many bars often had a spare room to store alcohol, but the fact there was no door but instead a bodyguard who wore rather high quality leather gear and a short sword left Nia alert. Even if she exploited the chaos, however, she doubted the guard would move even if someone were to be dying, so Nia gave up any thoughts of forcing her way into the room right now.