Of course we can't just up and leave. Or rather, Sylwia can't just abandon her post. We have to wait for a bit until a guild member shows up that can take over for her here at the tavern. It's a good thing that we aren't exactly in a hurry.

I could get going on my own for sure, but I want to take it slow for now since I want to avoid leveling up my new class by accident. The first few levels are earned easily after all, potentially too easy even, if you intend to save up those level ups for their second wind effect in a heated fight.

Thus I'm essentially doomed to just sit around and do nothing. I don't even listen in to any other conversations. I don't pay any special attention to the comings or goings either. In hindsight it might have been even better to get in another quick nap, but it's too late for that now. Well, that can't be helped anymore.

I get to experience a little surprise at long last at least. The person who comes to relieve Sylwia in the end is someone I have only met once before in a dark back alley. At the same time it's someone who looks very familiar. It's Jerzy's elusive brother and for once I get to see the man in actual daylight. The family resemblance certainly is undeniable. I finally get to know his name too as Sylwia greets him, waving him over to join us.

"Jurand! Just the man I was hoping to see! I have some urgent business. Could you take over for me?"

Judging by the grin on his face that pretty much is what he came for in the first place. He greets me too with a curt nod as he comes over to sit down in the same chair Sylwia vacates.

"Sylwia, Viviona. Best of luck with your business. Don't get too carried away though. I'd appreciate it, if there were still a town left standing by the time all is said and done."

I return his nod as a way of greeting but can't help but laugh out loud at the following request. I glance over at Sylwia who is chuckling too, before I answer.

"I guess we can try. It's not all up to us though. You know how it is when you are at odds with someone. Let's hope they aren't unreasonably stubborn."

Sylwia chuckles again and Jurand laughs out loud too.

"Well, do your best to make them see reason then."

After that exchange we are off to meet with Matylda at the little eatery Sylwia essentially calls home. As we draw close I speak up again.

"Can I leave my pack and my sword at your place again?"

"You don't want to bring your sword?"

I shake my head. No, that would be out of character for me. That would be like tipping our hand too soon. I'd rather leave our opponents the illusion that they are in control for a little longer.

She seems to think about it for a moment, then she nods.

"Fine by me. I'll take the things upstairs while I get changed then, if that's alright with you."

As we reach the place Matylda is already waiting for us. And of course she is taking advantage of the situation too, having a bowl of broth with what looks like fish and plenty of vegetables as well as noodles. It certainly smells tempting. She greets us with a cheerful wave, before she refocuses on her meal.

Michal doesn't seem to mind seeing us, not in a bad way at least. His little sister once again is less enthusiastic about it though, even if she keeps quiet. The tight lipped look certainly doesn't look like it's fun. Well, she shouldn't need to worry too much after tonight. At least not about Matylda and me. The way things seem to be, especially the heartfelt greeting Michal and Sylwia exchange, she won't be rid of the latter anytime soon though.

I hand Sylwia my pack and my sword as she heads upstairs. It seems Ewa wants me to order something, but I turn her down with a shake of the head.

"Not right now. I might have a strenuous workout ahead of me. Eating too much now might have adverse effects. Maybe later though, after we are done."

And besides I have had tea and cookies not too long ago, but I don't say that. Either way, the girl doesn't look too happy, but she doesn't press the issue. She might just be a little relieved that I don't stick around any longer than necessary right now. The suggestion alone, that I might be back later though, seems to bother her, judging by the way her brows furrow. Oh well, she'll have to live with it. And besides, since her brother seems to be a magician capable of turning rock crabs into the most delicious treats I might be back more often in general. So, she better learn to cope.

Finally Sylwia comes back down the stairs, all dressed up for her part of the show again. She has already assumed the slouched gait and all other characteristics for her role too. I get the impression she really is into this. Who knows, maybe the bruiser is branching out into other fields of skulduggery after all.

I take a moment to think back on what I learned about my status at the witches' place not too long ago. It should be safe to slip into my own role too. There should be virtually no risk of an early level up taking this path, thus I do that.

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"Well, looks like you are ready. This is the big evening, the grand finale, you know?"

Matylda too finishes puts down her now empty bowl to join us, as we slink away in the direction of the repurposed barn. As we make our way it's Sylwia who speaks up first.

"So, they didn't even approach us about fixing that fight they arranged."

Matylda is quick to confirm it.

"No. Not a word. The way I see it, they will put you into the ring with someone they think you can't defeat."

I nod along and add my own thoughts.

"Either one of their own, or maybe the teacher of the lad you trashed last night, you know?"

This catches the interest of the two.

"The teacher? You think? That one might actually be trouble. I didn't take her to be vengeful or anything like that though."

She probably isn't wrong in that regard, but I share why it might be an option anyway.

"True, she didn't appear to mind the thrashing the lad got. She might simply do it to get a measure of you. Or to show the lad that an opponent that thrashed him is nothing to her. Establishing dominance, even if just indirectly, you know."

Sylwia groans and I can understand why. That really is a troubling and troublesome prospect after all. Finally she speaks up again.

"Alright, we'll see, I guess. Maybe the duo already has moved on. These people wander a lot, supposedly. Anyway, if it's not them, which of the raccoons would the most likely contender to enter the ring?"

I look over at Matylda. She seems to be thinking on it too. As I finally speak up, I do so first only by a hair as she answers too.

"The big guy. The one pretending to be running the show, you know."

"The announcer."

Sylwia looks first at me, then at Matylda. Finally both look to me, as they speak in near unison.

"What makes you think that?"

I shrug casually.

"The announcer. I think she is the one who is the actual head of that outfit. I suspect that she'll only fight once she realizes that the jig is up. I could be wrong though, you know? Both regarding her role and her desire to smack you around a little."

Matylda looks thoughtful. Sylwia on the other hand groans and shakes her head.

"Actually I hope you are right. I'd much rather leave her to you and deal with the big lug instead. He strikes me as the kind of guy I should be able to weather even at their best if I go all out."

As we draw closer, Matylda hushes us up. The place is already pretty busy. That much is obvious even from the outside, as we approach. Someone uses an identification skill on me too.

I turn to look at the man responsible even as my [Shrouded Soul] skill improves a little, while the identification skill fails to take hold. It's the same one as the first time we got here. Has he leveled up his skill? That has to be it. There really isn't any other reason why he would try again otherwise. It might be a real good thing that Brygida helped me level up my protective skill earlier too. I flash him a toothy grin, but do my best not to sound menacing.

"Still not good enough."

The bigger of the bouncers, the only one to speak to us so far laughs out loud in response. As far as he is concerned this seems to be the expected result. He waves us in without a second thought. Either they still think that I'm one of Raccoon's faithful, or we might just be walking into a trap.

The inside of the barn is indeed already pretty well filled. It's quite lively too. Most attention is focused on the ring, as might be expected since a fight is already on. A few are drawn towards the bookies to place some last minute bets instead though. Overall, there are no big surprises.

I keep my eyes open for the small changes though. Those can be telling even if there is nothing obvious going on. Yet, at the same time I don't look too closely, as I don't want [Perception] to level up just yet. Damn, timing this just right is pretty tricky.

There are two rather obvious things I take note of even at a cursory glance. First off, the two foreigners are nowhere to be seen. And, although the seats on the second level up above are pretty well filled tonight, there is no sign of the guard captain or even just one of his lackeys to be seen either. It seems there is just the right amount of bad blood in between the involved parties after last night's excitement. So far, so good.

I follow Sylwia, now fully immersed in her Sylph persona once more, to her usual corner at the ring while Matylda heads off to talk with the tattooed bookies.

Our arrival alone is enough to take the excitement of the crowd to another level. Or rather, Slyph's arrival is. The people know her. The crowd loves her. And so far she has only shown up to fight, not to simply spectate. In the eyes of all the people hoping to make a quick penny this can mean only one thing, a sure pay day! That's probably exactly what the tattooed gang is counting on.

It's easy enough to identify the ones who hope to earn some easy coin as a result. It's the ones who stop paying attention to the current fight, which to be honest isn't all that exciting, to place some bets on Sylph before they can even know if she will fight for real and who she will be facing if she does. If the raccoons were playing it safe they could fill their coffers at the expense of those fools alone. Of course that isn't what's happening though.

Sylwia looks around to take in the scene too and cracks her knuckles.

"Seems like we'll have a grand night."

I grin, but when I nod I nod in the direction of the young woman going down in the ring then and there. She tries to push herself back up onto her elbows, but overall doesn't look like she'll be getting back up on her own.

"I'd offer to give you a massage again, but that gal might need my attention a little more than you right now, you know."

The announcer grabs the arm of the lad that remained standing and raises it high, declaring him the victor, while roughly half the crowd cheers while the rest curses.

I slip into the ring alongside Sylwia, but leave her to do some light stretching and warm up exercises, while I turn to the downed fighter instead.

The girl brought a friend, but she seems unable to get the injured fighter upright too. I stop her before she can make things worse.

"Careful. Something might be broken. Wouldn't want to make it worse by moving her too much."

Then I place a palm on the side where she caught the last punch. I do so carefully, as I suspect that she might have a broken rib there. Before either the injured woman or her friend can protest I speak a quick prayer, while the crowd is still going wild and providing ample acoustic cover. I don't invoke Fox directly by name anyway, just to make sure.

"Divine guardian of many masks, god of making mischief and goddess of having fun, I beg of you, heal this rascal and ease her pain."

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