I awoke to the sound of slight snoring. My eyes beheld an unfamiliar ceiling. When I turned my head, I saw Bila curled up on the floor. She was the apparent source of the snoring in my room. I immediately covered my mouth with my free hand to stifle a laugh. My movement did not go unnoticed.

"Had a good nap?" Kalistra asked, breaking the silence.

I slowly sat up on my bed and stretched my arms above my head. I was somewhat appreciative of her vigilance while I slept. Even though I was giving up my valued privacy, my bodyguard's presence ensured that I would not be kidnapped from my room again. "Good enough. Did anything exciting happened while I was asleep?"

"Aside from the fact that Bila tried to sneak into your bed? Again?" the cat girl hissed.

I winced. Yep, Kalistra was definitely old-fashioned when it came to relationships. Unless I broke off my relationship with Amelica, Kalistra made it her mission to ensure that I would not cheat on my girlfriend. Not that I was going to, anyway.

I pointed a finger at the still-sleeping cat girl on the floor. "I thought she was supposed to share watch duty with you," I remarked.

"Me, too," she hissed again.

Ouch. I wisely decided to change the topic. "How long was I out?"

"The seventh horn has blown," she answered.

The last thing I remembered was sitting in the VIP room. My eyes became extremely tired all of a sudden. I just wanted to rest my head on the table for a quick minute. Apparently, the minute stretched into many more minutes. "Who carried me back to my room?" I asked.

"Van," the cat girl. "Disappointed?" she asked with amusement.

I had an image of being carried by Kalistra up the stairs. My knees were bent over her shoulders and she held onto my ankles. *Clong-clong-clong* The back of my head kept bumping the steps because Kalistra was too short.

Actually, this happened to me while we were exploring the first Ph'laen Ruins. I had lost my balance while descending a staircase in the darkness and nearly fell off the stairs. An exasperated Kalistra carried me on my back but my boots kept hitting the steps because she was too short.

Be that as it may, I was becoming distracted and I admonished myself for my mental weakness. Stay focused, Larry! I will need to thank Van whenever I see him again. "It's too early to return to sleep," I replied and ignored her slight taunt-framed-as-a-polite-question. "I would like to take a walk around the city," I requested.

Kalistra stared at me for a moment. As my bodyguard, she could overrule me if I was needlessly putting my life in danger. However, she believed that the danger had passed in Southampton and she was willing to accommodate me. "Fine," she nodded. "But we must return to The Trade Wind by the tenth horn," she insisted.

"Fine," I reciprocated.

The cat girl nudged Bila unceremoniously in the rib.

However, the larger cat girl would not wake up.

Kalistra's eyes glowed and as she purposely stepped on Bila's tail!

The ensuing pain forced Bila awake with a loud, "Yeol!" The cat girl pulled her throbbing tail to her chest and cradled it in her paws. "What did you do that for?" she hissed.

Kalistra grinned. "I couldn't wake you up," she answered nonchalantly.

Bila hissed again.

I decided to step in before the cat fight escalated. I cast Minor Heal on her tail. "Minor heal SUCCESSFUL. +5 Health, +25 XP." I winced at the pop-up. I frowned at the evil minx. "You shouldn't have stepped on her THAT hard," I scolded her.

"Oops!" Kalistra replied and gave me an exaggerated shrug.

Rolling my eyes, I turned toward the tall cat girl. "I want to take an evening stroll. Can you join us?" I requested politely.

"Of course, milord!" Bila replied and rubbed my forehead against her own affectionately. Her tail dangled happily.

Suddenly, I felt a sharp end poke me in the stomach. I looked down and saw that it was my scabbard--and Kalistra was holding it.

"Don't forget your scabbard, milord," the evil minx said in a neutral tone of voice.

"Thank you," I replied and took the scabbard. I quickly tied it to my belt and turned toward the door.

Bila opened it for me and followed me into the hallway.

Kalistra locked the door behind her.

"Should I ask the others to come with us?" I pondered aloud.

"No need," my bodyguard declined. She pressed both paws on my back and pushed me gently. "Let's go!" she urged.

I quickly walked down the staircase.

"Oh! You're awake!" Bernetta exclaimed when she noticed me standing in the lobby. "Do you have a headache? Should I fetch something to ease the pain?" she offered.

I smiled at the hostess. "I'm fine. I drank four bowls of your delicious soup and all the potatoes I ate made me fall asleep. I apologize for my rudeness." I nodded in her direction.

She bowed deeply in return. "No need to apologize, Brother Mulligan. You had a very long day today. Your body required rest. If I may ask, milord, why have you left your room?"

"I want to take a walk around your city," I answered honestly.

"I'm not sure that's a wise decision, milord," Bernetta replied with a slight frown.

My eyes narrowed. "Why?"

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"We have a ninth-horn curfew in Southampton," she informed me, "and The Trade Wind's doors will be closed for the night."

"What time is it now?" I asked while hiding my surprise at the early curfew.

My hostess checked the clock, strategically placed above the exit out of the tavern. "It's a quarter after the seventh horn," she answered.

"Do you still want to go out?" Kalistra asked me with a neutral tone of voice. Since she was acting as my bodyguard in front of Bernetta, she did not voice her objection to a nighttime stroll. But in asking the question, the cat girl already hinted what she thought of the idea.

I couldn't blame Kalistra for her concern, though. During our travels, we've had a number of bad encounters during the evening hours. For whatever reason, I seemed to be an encounter-magnet for all the nasty and evil characters who happened to be nearby: the drows in the process of kidnapping children back in Tregome, a wolf pack in the countryside beyond the town, and a group of assassins outside Bristol were just three examples. Nonetheless, I refused to be deterred from my nighttime stroll. "Yes, I could use some fresh air," I replied. Take that, you little minx! Muahahah!

Bila opened the door for me. "In that case, let's hurry!" She waved her paw for emphasis.

I smiled at her because Bila had helped me shut down Kalistra's protest entirely. I quickly walked out of the tavern and my two bodyguards followed closely behind me. I looked around for a moment. The shops and other small buildings on the street did not look familiar to me.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to familiarize myself with the city during daytime hours because of the pirate raid. Additionally, the street lanterns were few and spread out too widely to fully illuminate the area. This, in turn, created far too many pockets of darkness along the streets--perfect hiding places for thieves and assassins.

I had two remedies in mind. I could either create a Light sphere or cast Night Vision on my eyes to see in the dark. The second option made more sense because my companions were able to see in the dark. However, this would make me look mighty suspicious if anyone was spying on me. I quickly checked for a tail with my Spirit Sense and found no one. But I couldn't relax because I knew that I could easily be spied upon via magic. In the end, I decided to play the role of an upright member of the Church. Thus, I created a Light sphere and it hovered above my head. "Light SUCCESSFUL. +25 XP."

"Where to?" Kalistra asked. Her tail whiplashed back and forth because she was antsy to start walking.

I pondered the question for a moment. The only places I knew were the dock and the Magic Guild. I quickly decided to visit both. "I want to head over to the pier first. And then visit the library at the Magic Guild," I informed my companions. I started walking north because I knew that was the direction of the pier.

After a fifteen-minutes walk, we arrived at the dock. There were numerous ships and boats tied to the dock. Including the two pirate ships, which I assumed had been seized by the Magic Guild. I was happy to see the other vessels because it meant that word had spread and the merchants were aware that the pirate blockade of the port had ended.

A gentle breeze blew over the water, and I smelled the sea. The air was different compared to the smell of the sea air in my homeworld. The tide swayed back and forth in a steady rhythm. And for the first time since I left Tregome, I felt a sense of peace and contentment.

Unfortunately, someone decided to break the mood. Any guesses who?

"Milord, if you wish to visit the Magic Guild's library, we must depart from the pier now," Kalistra reminded me.

Her voice broke me out of my reverie. I took one last look at the peaceful scenery and burned it into my memory. This was what I had fought to protect during the pirate raid and when I asked for divine intervention to stop the fire. And I suspected that the Gods will make demands of me for this favor.

I turned and started walking toward the guild building. It was not a difficult task to locate the building itself because it took the appearance of a traditional wizard tower. Moreover, it was the tallest building in Southampton and the tower loomed over everything else in the city.

On top of the tower was a giant light sphere, which changed color every five minutes. The color varied from green to yellow, white, red, and orange. Apparently, the building served a second purpose as a de facto lighthouse. Given the fact that the sea trade was the lifeblood of the city, it made sense for the Magic Guild to turn its headquarters into a lighthouse. This cemented the importance of the Magic Guild in the eyes of the common folk.

As I entered the tower, I heard a horn blew for a long time. It was the eighth hour after twelve noon. I had only one hour remaining before the start of curfew. I turned around and looked at my bodyguards. "Please hold my hands," I ordered. Once they obeyed me, I used the power word, "Bibliotheca!"

As my world turned into a giant kaleidoscope, I marveled at the fact that the various branches of the Magic Guild were using the same magic words to teleport to different sections of the building. It was rather convenient for me.

When we landed in the hallway in front of a door, I opened the door and walked in. I found myself in the lobby of the library. I quickly approached the reception desk, which was manned by a gnome.

The gnome had a full beard which was neatly trimmed. His long brown hair was tied back with a simple black band and fell to his shoulder. The most notable thing about the gnome was that he did not wear glasses. "Greetings, Brother. How many I help you?" he asked politely.

I checked the librarian's caption and nodded. "Greetings, Librarian Lux 'Sifen. I am seeking a map of the area surrounding Southampton," I replied. "And may I borrow a parchment to make a copy of the map?" I added.

The librarian reached into his desk and pulled out a parchment and a small tube; he set them on the table. "5 silvers please."

I untied my sack of gold and placed one coin on the table.

Lux 'Sifen took the gold piece and slowly counted out my change.

Once I put the coins in my sack, the librarian rose from his seat. "Please follow me."

We followed him to a back room. There were a number of maps pinned to the walls.

Lux 'Sifen crossed the room, which had several work desks and long tables, and stood in front of the wall directly opposite the door exiting the room. He placed his hand on a map in the middle of the wall. "This is it," he announced. He carefully pulled out the pins and took down the map. He laid it flat on a long table and backed away. He handed me the pins. "When you are finished copying the map, please put it back on the wall," he instructed me.

"Thank you for your help," I said with a nod.

"The curfew is at the ninth hour. The library will be closed twenty minutes prior to that," he said and then left the room.

I placed the parchment on top of the map. I took my quill and inkwell out of my leather pouch and started copying the map. Honestly, I wasn't a great artist and the result was evident in my feeble attempt to copy the map. Nonetheless, I was using shorthand to draw the areas beyond the seaport. Hampshire, where Bila came from, was to the north.

When I looked at the map, I realized that I made a mistake in thinking that the pier was to the north of the city. According to the map, it was located at the southern tip of Southampton. And The Trade Wind was in the northernmost section of the city. Somehow, I had reversed the two directions. I suspected that when I teleported from Bristol and directly into the Magic Guild in Southampton, the protective magic surrounding the building had reversed my direction sense and north became south as a result.

Putting that aside, it appeared that my task in locating the Ph'laen Ruins will be fairly difficult because the area beyond Southampton was mountainous. Immediately beyond the borders of the city were Bassett and Chilworth. Another possibility was Toot Hill to the northwest. I truly hoped the ruins were in one of these locations because otherwise, I would need to investigate the New Forest, which was on the other side of the Southampton River and located southwest of the city. Perhaps, the hunter Bernetta had mentioned will have an idea of where the ruins may be located.

Seeing that my copying of the map was completed, I pinned the original map back to the wall and then exited the back room with my companions. As I made my way back to the lobby section of the library, I was accosted by Lux 'Sifen.

The gnome grinned. "Oh, goody! I was about to kick you of the library. It's closing time."

I looked at the wand of teleportation on his belt. "Please use your wand," I requested politely. "It'll save me the trouble," I shrugged.

The librarian's grin widened. He pointed the simple looking wand at the three of us.

A moment later, we were dumped on the ground next to the exit out of the building. The doors automatically slid open.

Ignoring the dizziness I was experiencing, I walked through the doorway and returned to the street.