The proprietress held a ledger in one hand and a mug of beer in the other. She opened her massive mouth and yelled at a bunny girl dressed as a bartender, "You little slut, stop listening to their tall tales and get over here to serve the drinks!"

After the bunny girl took away the beer, the proprietress turned to Ronald and asked in a rough voice, "Kid, are you staying or just eating? Oh right, where's your family? How come you came alone?"

"I'd like a room, please prepare a bucket of hot water and a dinner for me," Ronald ignored her latter questions.

"Room, hot water and dinner, that'll be 3 silver coins for the night," said the proprietress.

Ronald handed over three silver coins, took the key from the proprietress, and followed the bartender to his room.

The proprietress cupped her chin with one hand and watched Ronald's back as he left, leaning to one side.

It was a very alluring pose, but looked rather odd on the burly proprietor.

A cyclops adventurer sitting near the counter witnessed the whole scene. He appeared to know the proprietress and teased her directly, "Hey Barbara, what's up? Got your eyes on the boy?"

"Night Owl, cut the crap. I'm just finding the kid interesting, that's all," the proprietress retorted, throwing a punch at the cyclops that nearly knocked him under the table.

"Interesting? I don't see anything special about him."

"He's probably another brooding kid, no different than those other brats coming here to die."

"I'm surprised the legendary berserker Barbara fancies such a type. How unexpected."

The regulars chimed in with their opinions, but the hot-tempered proprietress didn't erupt as usual. She just stared silently at the hallway Ronald had left through, seemingly lost in thought.

After washing off the dust from travel, Ronald came to the lobby with damp hair.

With the last sliver of dusk gone, Dragon Fort entered its nightlife hours. The streets were busy and the inn's lobby became lively.

Ronald's arrival drew some jeers from the crowd.

"Who's kid is this, coming to an inn alone?"

"So pale, he even outshines the girl at the door. Dress him up in a skirt and he'll charm a whole crowd."

"Hey boy, you're here for fun right? Buy me a drink and I'll tell you which girl's got the best skills!"

Raucous laughter filled the room. Ronald was used to such teasing by now. It was his own fault, always acting with an adult mindset and forgetting his real age of just 15 years old.

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Of course a 15 year old going to a lodging inn alone would draw jokes from the bored veterans and adventurers here for entertainment.

The warm wall lamps shone on the mercs' faces, blurring their features in the rising food steam. Ronald weaved through the noisy, ambiguous, boozy and cheap perfumed lobby to find a corner seat for his meal.

Being new in town, Ronald didn't plan to head straight to the underground labyrinth. He wanted to gather more intel before going down. Inns and taverns were of course the best spots to pick up information for free, with drunk adventurers boasting about childhood crushes to impress their friends.

But things didn't go as smoothly as Ronald expected.

Under alcohol's influence, some people's hidden desires turned into overt malice.

Bang! A huge thud sounded as a plate of meat crashed onto Ronald's table. Three gaudily dressed youths giggled as they appeared before him.

"Hey beauty, mind if we sit here?" One asked, already settling into a seat.

Ronald frowned and set down his utensils at this scene.

The gaudy youths made no attempt to disguise their actions. As soon as they approached Ronald, the inn's revelry quieted significantly as adventurers turned to watch the unfolding drama, eager to see Ronald's reaction.

Being new in town, Ronald really didn't want any trouble.

With no connections here, who knew if these punks had powerful backers? Knock them down now and they could just bring a whole gang back to surround and beat him. To avoid getting beaten up, he'd have to keep knocking them down, and they'd just keep bringing stronger fighters...it was a endless cycle.

After careful thought, Ronald chose to take a step back...and tattle on them.

"Madam proprietor, do you allow patrons to be harassed like this in your establishment?" Ronald called out to the brawny woman behind the counter.

This sudden turn shocked everyone present. It was as if the air itself had been sucked away, with no medium to transmit sounds. The entire lobby fell silent for several seconds before the proprietress' hearty laugh rang out and noise returned to the room.

"Gulp gulp," the sound of drinking.

"The kid's pretty smart."

"Just temporarily clever. He can't hide in the inn forever."

"Hey don't say that, Barbara might really fancy his type."

Whispers rippled through the crowd as the barbarian woman warrior emerged from behind the counter.

She was taller than most fighters, like facing an upright grizzly bear!

When she stood before the three youths, the otherworldly punks instantly sobered up.

"Jim, the Adventurer's Home welcomes all guests for drinks, but not gangsters looking for trouble. If you don't want your new bride to be widowed, disappear from my sight this instant!"

The three punks' faces fluctuated between green and pale. They wanted to toss out some tough words to regain face, but upon seeing Barbara's fan-sized palms, could only settle for a "I'll remember you" glare at Ronald before slinking away in shame.

After driving away the troublemakers, the proprietress sat down across from Ronald amidst catcalls from the crowd, bearing a mug of beer.

"Here, this is for you, as compensation for being harassed in my establishment."

Ronald stood up and gave her a formal bow, thanking her for the help. His serious manners drew another round of laughter, with some bold adventurers yelling "Get together!"

But the two involved were not as intimate as the crowd imagined.

"You seem very interested in the labyrinth, always slowing your tasks to listen carefully when the mercenaries mention it. I figured you must have some questions for me. But before we talk, let me guess at your identity first.

Your speech and conduct don't match someone from a poor family, so your background is likely not bad. And you don't have the build of someone who trains, so not a knight either. Your eyes are balanced and fingers more delicate than a woman's, so not an archer... Thinking it through, a noble scion fits you best.

So young nobleman, what brought you here?"

Ronald had to admit this retired warrior's observations were keen, largely guessing his roots correctly.

But she only got part of it right.

Ronald was not some touring nobleman's son.

He was just a expelled mage trying to make a independent living.