To her credit, the woman recovered quickly and gave a deep bow. "I apologise, Esteemed Sir, my conduct has brought shame to this institution."

The guards behind her stiffened and looked at each other nervously. This was the first time they had seen the manager look so flustered and timid. Even when official members of The Hunt came to stay at the inn, the manager was not intimidated and was able to command respect. The fact that a ring could force her bow spoke volumes of this "Vulcan".

Astar waved away her concern "We came in without using the proper protocols and we aren't wearing any insignia or tattoos of The Hunt. You did your job and you shouldn't be punished for that."

The woman however didn't look relieved and seemed to want to argue but caught herself. She smiled again but this time the smile was more gentle. "Thank you, Sir allow me to introduce myself. My name is Vivian Cambridge and I'm the manager of this branch of Hermit's Home. It would be my honour to host you and your companions. As a sign of my apology, your stay will be covered by me."

Astar still trying to reassure Vivian paused and thought for a moment. Wiping a smirk on his face, he said in a serious tone, "That would be a suitable recompose for your transgression."

Vivian nodded, happy that the situation was sufficiently dealt with. She turned to the rest and bowed once again. "Greetings esteemed guests, it is my honour to greet you. May I have the honour of knowing your names."

Mia who was not a fan of the atmosphere, hurried to introduce herself but Emile put a hand on her shoulder. "That's not important, we are here for a specific reason and will be out of Bastion Hill soon. If that's an issue then we can leave." Emile said as he held her gaze.

Vivian shook her head "No, no this isn't an interrogation. Vulcan's trust for Mr. Nightfang is more than enough."

Vivian led them further and took them to the reception. Waiting at reception while Astar filled in some details, Emile and Mia noticed that all the staff were beast-kin, something that was very unusual in Bastion Hill.

Emile raised an eyebrow and looked at Vivian curiously, his eyes lit up for a moment before dimming. Then he narrowed his eyes before he shrugged as he caught Mia's gaze. He mouthed "None of my business" and he took a seat on a beautifully embroidered sofa.

Vivian turned back towards them but upon not finding what she was looking for, she went back to helping Astar. She thought "I thought I felt a gaze that went through my illusion but there isn't any unusual magic in the vicinity. Must be my imagination."

After a few minutes, Astar and Vivian came back. Astar said "We have three rooms booked for our stay. There aren't many guests at the moment so we have the entire 3rd floor to ourselves. We can either go there now or we can grab some food first."

Emile stood up and stretched his back "Lets go to the room first and decompress. We've been in the wagon for half a day and it would be good for us to clean up and relax"

Mia agreed "Yeah, I could use a shower and a change of clothing. We can meet up for dinner, okay?"

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Astar however said, "You two go up ahead of me, I need to contact Vulcan to ensure that there isn't any confusion."

Emile said, "That's fine, but let us know if you need any help?"

He and Mia then followed a staff member in deer ears up the stairs. The inn was designed in such a way that the stairways were enclosed, so you had to open a rune-locked door with the key for your room.

The staff member led them to the 3rd floor and informed them that every room in the inn was cleaned and supplied every morning regardless of whether they were occupied. Then after informing them of their room, the staff member left them to their own devices.

Emile opened the door and walked into a corridor that had 7 doors, 3 on either side and 1 at the end. Astar had given Emile the large room at the end and, both he and Mia the rooms on either side of him.

They first checked that Mia's room didn't have any issues and saw it was secure and there weren't any listening spells or devices. They then went to Emile's room and Mia was surprised by the difference.

While Mia's room was large and luxurious, Emile's was closer to an apartment. The bedroom was behind closed doors and a lavish living room was what greeted visitors. Emile invited Mia to take a seat and went to get some refreshments. Casting a detection spell to make sure the drinks were poisoned, he brought some water and wine for Mia.

Pouring himself a cup of water, he made himself comfortable in an armchair. He looked at Mia and said, "We are now alone, so come on."

"Hmm?"

"You've had the 'I'm lost and I would like to know more but I'll wait when we have time.' expression since we met Astar last night." Emile grabbed some grapes from the tables.

Mia realising that her face was an open book, pouted but had no reply. "Okay, let's start with Astar. Who is he?"

"He is a vassal of House Erebus and has been in its service for about a decade. He is a wind practitioner and a powerful swordsman."

Mia nodded and began to take notes "And the reason is he is here for this mission."

"He is the most knowledgeable person on Tharren that I could invite on such short notice. He is also very familiar with this city and has contacts in it. Some that you have now met."

"Yes, who are they and who is Vulcan?"

"This inn and its staff are part of The Hunt, one of the top guilds from Erasmus. Vulcan is one the executives of The Hunt, and Astar and him go way back."

Mia was keeping up with Emile's explanations but she was curious "Why is a guild from Erasmus keeping an inn within the Black Plain Bandits' region?"

"It's not only this city or this region, Hermits' Home is a known establishment. There are even a few in Avalyn. The reasons for these inns are 1: To give their members a safe haven and 2: To monitor the treatments of beastkin."

"The branch here is more staffed and its defences are greater. Bastion Hill has become a hellhole for beastkin since Harold took over and The Hunt has been monitoring it more closely."

Mia took a sip of her wine "Will The Hunt begin to take hostile actions against the Bandits? I know that foreign nations and powers don't usually get involved in Tharren."

"It's unlikely since the situation in Bastion Hill doesn't seem long-term. I'm going to assume that the leadership of the Bandits have given The Hunt and their leader, Casimir assurances that this will be resolved soon. They better have, because if Casimir decides to get involved, then blood and devastation will visit Tharren."

Mia paused "Casimir 'Son of the Moon' Ager?", her hand trembled at the thought of the Beast of Erasmus.

Emile nodded "Yes, that's him. It's unlikely that he will come here because the conflict in Tharren will then move to the next power level and no one has the appetite for that kind of conflict. Especially since Tharren is beginning to settle a bit more."

Mia reassured that a living calamity wouldn't come sighed in relief "Okay, so what is our plan? How are we going to find the boy? Is The Hunt going to help us?"

Emile smiled "Yes, Astar told me that they have an extensive information network. But we aren't only going to rely on them." As he said that, he snapped his fingers and two figures jumped out of his shadow.