Thankfully looking busy is not terribly hard when you are hauling about bundles of pelts. Good gods, I wish the ship were carrying something else. These things are rather smelly. Not in a way that would mean that they haven't been treated properly and are rotten, but they still smell of wild animal. One wild animal would hardly be noticeable. A few, maybe even in their nature habitat, not so much either, but a whole lot of them rolled up into a compact bundle? No, this really isn't for me.

I don't try to hide my disgust and the look doesn't go unnoticed either. The same is true for the way I push on ahead anyway too and that is the important part. If anyone will remember me, it probably will be as the new girl willing to work past her discomfort. That's just fine as far as I'm concerned.

Looking busy is not the hard part. Actually getting a good look at anything is. The place is filled with all kinds of trade goods after all and it is quite lively too, especially right now. Maybe I should come back another time, possibly at night, once the warehouse is closed. Not for my current job, but to help myself to some more gear. Many of the things stored here aren't particularly useful to me in general, like bales of cloth or the furs I'm carrying, but there are other things too.

As I bring in my first load and head out to get another I get a rough idea of the general layout of the place. My [Stealth] improves some too. As I bring in the next bundle of furs I start forming a plan. A plan I keep refining bit by bit with every trip too and from the warehouse. Thankfully I have time. Unloading a ship, even a relatively small river ship, takes some time after all.

I already have a way in and out. And I even figure out an additional escape route. A counter intuitive one, as I'll have to go up and slip out on the roof through one of the dormer windows. From there the rest of the city's rooftops will be open to me though. If things go badly I thus should be make a clean getaway.

[*Ding!* Your skill Streetwise has leveled up to level 6!]

I blink in surprise, but never so much as hesitate. I have to admit though, this divine whisper is unexpected. Well, I'll take it anyway. Thank you very much!

I even managed to spot the place where the receipts for the incoming goods are being stacked up. Now all I still need is either an opportunity to pass by close enough to slip my receipt into the pile or a distraction elsewhere that will allow me to do so.

I think I'll go for the first option. A distraction may draw attention elsewhere, but it certainly generates some attention too. I'd rather everyone remains oblivious to my intentions and actions to begin with.

In the end I decide to go not with a distraction but an excuse to stop near the intended spot. For this purpose I grab a slightly heavier and more unwieldy bundle for the next trip.

I have a tough time getting a good grip on it, but I manage. It starts to slip little by little almost right away though. I'll have to set the bundle down eventually to readjust my grip. Now all that remains to be done is to time it just right.

The timing isn't off, but I sense someone coming around one of the many stacks of various goods just in time, to abort my attempt to place the piece of parchment I brought with the others. At least this earns me another partial increase for [Perception] if nothing else, as I just readjust the heavy load I'm carrying.

It is one of the scribes working here and he comes to add some more receipts to the stack himself.

One disaster, even if just a minor one averted. Even better, this gives me an idea for a slightly better approach on how to do the drop off.

Once again timing will be key and I decide to give it a try when I return with the next, over sized bundle of furs.

This time around I make sure to arrive just about when the scribe does too. And just as I'm about to pass him, I pretend to lose my grip on the furs I' carrying. I don't drop them, but I let them slip just enough to make the scribe take a step away to evade it.

And as he does so, he bumps into the lectern where the receipts are being collected. It isn't much, but it is enough to knock some of them onto the floor.

Without missing a step, and before he can get a proper look I drop the one Jerzy gave me onto the floor too. I mumble an apology, as if I only now discover the accident I caused.

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“Sorry about that.”

Everything considered my little show seems to be good enough. Good enough to fool the poor man and good enough to earn me a little progress for both my [Bluff] as well as my [Sleight of Hand] skill too.

The scribe in turn sighs and shakes his head. He doesn't get too worked up though. He just motions for me to keep going as he scrambles to pick the scattered receipts back up. His reply to my apology sounds a little resigned. This might just not be the first time something like this has happened.

“Never mind. Just keep going and maybe pick smaller bundles in the future.”

I nod in turn and get going again. I don't leave right away though. That would be conspicuous. No, I stick around until we are done unloading this one particular ship. This has the additional benefit, that I get my penny afterwards. It isn't much, but for me, and probably everyone else working here, every penny counts.

Those dock workers unloading three or more ships a day might even be able to make an actual living like this, but I don't intend to stick around long enough to find out. No, back breaking labor might be good as a cover, but in the long run it really isn't for me.

This little venture certainly helped pass some time though. That much is for sure. It has made me hungry too. My stomach decides to remind me of that fact just then by rumbling quite audibly. I really need to get myself something to eat.

Maybe I should take this opportunity to work on my [Sleight of Hand] some more? It has come in pretty handy already today, but it certainly could do with another level up or two. Should I help myself to another of these sugary sweet apples? Or something else?

There isn't a whole lot of ready to eat food on sale at the local market itself, other than these delicious fruits. There are of course plenty of various roadside eateries around the market, but nabbing something from one of those is a whole lot harder and more risky.

I take a route around the market in question anyway to have a good look at what is either for sale or on the menu today. It is pretty much as I suspected. Very little of the raw food on sale is fit for consumption without being cooked first. That of course doesn't mean that there is nothing.

I decide not to hit the fruit merchant today. Tempting as his delicious apples might be, it is asking for trouble if you go for the same mark every day. No, I go for something else instead. There is a market stall selling grilled fish on a stick. The fish in question aren't too big and thanks to the sticks they are pretty easy to carry too. The stall is pretty busy as well, without being too crowded, which is always good if you want to get something at a five finger discount. Even better though, they smell absolutely wonderful! That more than anything else helps me make up my mind.

With my mind made up I observe the stall a little longer from a distance, while I pretend to have a look at the wares of other stalls.

I strike, as I spot a group of apprentices and journeymen from around here move up to the stall. They'll be my distraction and cover. The half dozen conversations they have going all at once would strain just about anyone's attention to the limit. The poor couple working the stall certainly barely can keep up with all the orders the group places on top of that.

With the craftsmen and women busy placing orders and receiving their grilled fish one more hand reaching for a grilled treat is hardly worth noting too.

My [Stealth] is the first skill to improve some. It is edging towards the next level up ever so slowly. It's not the only one though. As I withdraw my hand, my prize held tightly, [Sleight of Hand] finally levels up, as the divine whisper which brushes my mind lets me know.

[*Ding!* Your skill Sleight of Hand has leveled up to level 5!]

I'm tempted to grin like a fool, but I refrain. I follow a group of apprentices away for a bit, doing my best to blend in with the crowd, before departing to look for a quiet place in one of the side alleys.

Quiet places seem in short supply right now though. At least down here on street level, thus I decide to take to the rooftops once again. Getting there is a little tricky though. Everything is a little more tricky when you have to mind the grilled fish on a stick.

I really need both hands free, thus I really only have one option. Well, I only have one option because I don't want to put the fish dripping with fat in my backpack. That would be so messy! Well, in the end the choice is easy.

In my mouth the fish goes! Then, with a running start, I jump from wall to wall, ledge to ledge until I finally can grab onto the edge of a roof and pull myself up. Just in time too, as my juicy treat threatens to slip free due to all the sudden movement.

Today I have no appreciative audience. Only a woman who just so happens to look out a window as I ascend shakes her head before she goes back to whatever she is busy with.

Well, you can't have it all. Not everyday at least. And anyway, what really matters is that I have a nice meal! That is all I really need right now. That my [Jumping] skill improved a little due to my acrobatics is only a welcome bonus too.

For now I make myself comfortable against one of the chimneys up here to enjoy my treat. I enjoy the view too while I'm at it. Why wouldn't I after all. The only thing that could make this moment even better would be some good company and maybe a drink.

I guess the other guild members are busy though. I can't really expect them to entertain my whims like that. And if I want a drink I'll have to get one, one way or the other. Maybe I should negotiate a bottle as compensation for my efforts the next time we do some rum running? Although, strictly speaking the spirits we smuggled aren't exactly rum. Do you still call it rum running in that case? Well, whatever.

Another question is more important anyway. Should I try to sign up with the adventurers' guild? The way Jerzy put it, it might be a bit of a hassle, but maybe a membership with them can still benefit me anyway?

For a little while I just sit there and nibble on my fish, while I think on the question a little more. Finally, as I finish my meal, I come to a conclusion. I nod to myself as I get back up and take off in the direction of the wall. I might as well give it a try. At the very least I might as well ask about the formalities involved with joining the adventurers' guild. Yes, that is the very least I should do.