[NeoRealm] Chapter 87 - Follow Up Letter (Patreon)

It is around an hour before noon when Jason reaches town. With a quick check of his Guild card and he is able to enter. His first stop today will be the Adventurers Guilds because there are a few things to take care of and some tails to turn in. Jason is actually a bit embarrassed at one task he needs to do. When he visited to read James’ letter Jason had forgotten to send a confirmation back to Rosha. Things were a bit of a trouble for him that day. Now with a couple nights between then and he has had some time to dwell on the situation. Not that it doesn’t stop him from worrying about it as he heads to the Guild.

He turns it over in his head, “Did I really think of him as my friend? Why would I do that? Until now I have known a lot people but few were my friends. At least Rosha is turning out all right. Even before this life only the hero could really count as my friend. I guess I just don’t connect with others easily. Though if so why did I accept James? We only spent a handful of days together. Then again, I guess someone raised to lead a cult would be good at emotional manipulation. There is not really much I can do about this problem. If I see James again, I can figure it out then. Anyway, the Guild is right there.”

Jason sighs and jogs the final distance to the Adventurers Guild. His first stop inside is to turn in the tails. As luck would have it, the same receptionist, A female red foxkin, he registered the quest with is on desk today. With 8 tails he has a little over half the requested amount so the receptionist is happy to hand over 60 silver coins. That complete Jason asks the receptionist, “Has there been any news on what Jarr the goblin warboss is up to?”, and he hands her 3 of the silver back. With a smile the foxkin pockets the money before answering that, “We had a small party confirm seeing him farther away from the town than usual. Still sulking by the checkerboard but nothing new about that. You don’t really need to worry about someone sniping him on you. Word has gotten around someone is questing for him. As the checkerboard only really has Snarltails in it most people stay away to begin with. However don’t think that means you can wait on it. People are coming into town all the time and you never know what newcomers might do.” Jason thanks her for the information and heads over to the mail desk. No alerts had popped up when he entered so a letter was not waiting for him. However his response to Rosha was much overdue.

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Hey Rosha,

Sorry for not getting back to you sooner. Your letter was a much-needed warning. James’ letter was like a punch to the gut. After reading it I just left town to beat up some cats. Still haven’t settled with the nonsense but that is life. Anyway, feel free to bring your friend. At least this time you know what they are actually like. On my side I don’t really know anyone I could invite to the group. Besides, I feel three people is a good low level party. With your healer friend we would actually have the holy trinity of dps, tank, and healer. Though I must admit I am more of a dodge tank at the moment than a traditional one. I need to work on my HP but then again I never heard a tank complain about having too much of the stuff. Besides that I should breakthrough within the next week. Afterwards I will head out. Do you have anywhere we could meet up at? I haven’t really had the time to check on the towns that are around the area.

Thank you,

Jason

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With the letter done and rent money gained Jason heads back to the Scratchy Pinecone. When he gets to the inn the owner, Fern, seems to have been waiting for him. She greets him with a wave and gestures to enter. Once inside, she still keeps quiet and guides him to his room. Now in the privacy of Jason’s room she speaks up, “So trouble seems to follow you. Those first spies came from groups in this city. Nothing to important to speak of with them. They shut up and moved on after you left town. However it looks like they sold info on your location to some information broker. There are now two groups in town on a lookout for you. The first one I expected and you should have too. While Shinefish village is not directly connected to us they are close enough, I pay attention to what happens over there. Your little legal scuffle with that wolfkin of course has caused waves and that resulted in the second round of spies. You shouldn’t worry too much about them because they won't do anything to you as long as you aren’t going into their kingdom. The third group is the one that should worry you. They just showed yesterday and all the spies were dwarves. I can see by the look on your face you likely know the source. I haven’t really looked into it because they aren’t from any moderately sized power. If they don’t know to keep their heads down in my inn then more fun for me. However they are the least informed about you so the dwarves shouldn’t cause you any problem. The idiots couldn’t even find where you’re staying! That is a simple matter of spending some money in the right places. Though speaking of money, tonight is your last night. Would you like to extend your stay?”

Jason looks up from facepalming and sighs, “Yeah, sign me up for another week. The Snarltails are almost too easy to kill but they are spread out a good bit.”