Krys POV

As they walked through the busy capital streets, Krys' ears swiveled beneath his hood. He thought he knew what busy looked like, but Sunspot Keep had nothing on this place and the crowds that seemed to fill the sidewalks and streets around him.

Checking in on his team, he watched Zax take up the rear of the group and kept a keen eye on the team's pockets as they all walked. They were unknown to this place after all, and until they made contact with the local guild, they were likely fair game for any would-be 'fishermen.'

For her part, Sera was already scanning the crowds, a mischievous smile creeping on her lips. Krys could practically see her eyes gleaming with avarice at the big city coin jingling around her.

With a casual swish of his tail, he lightly smacked Sera's hand before glancing at her from under his hood and shooting her a silent warning before looking ahead again while ignoring her vague disappointment.

Just as they were targets for their fellow thieves and rogues until they properly presented themselves to the guild, they were also unable to engage in guild activities until they made their introductions to the local members, lest they step on toes or trespass on another's fishing grounds among other things.

As they continued to walk, the sound of rustling papers caught Krys' attention away from the rest of the city's hustle and bustle. Following his ears, he watched Ren almost blindly walk in the middle of his team while reading through the papers she had received from that short mage. "Say... What's that you have there?"

Ren jumped with surprise, and he got the impression that she hadn't realized just how focused she was on her reading. "Hm? Oh! Uhh..." she murmured before looking up at Krys and flashing a sheepish smile while her tail swayed with evident delight and anticipation. "It's magic stuff," she said simply before offering the papers to him while picking up the pace to walk at his side.

Taking up the various sheets of paper, he casually flipped through the contents, his eyes scanning the writing for anything that made sense to him, which was frighteningly little. "I see... What's it about?" He asked while handing the papers back to her.

“Well… They’re spells,” she said as she flipped through the few pages. “Cecil says I need to figure out how to decipher his code and translate the instructions into something I can use. Then, I can work on moving the mana around and out of my body to cast them. Though, with that said, I’ll also need to get a spell focus if I want to be effective with actual casting with the small amount of mana I have within my manaheart.”

Krys nodded along, doing his best to understand this magic talk. From what he knew, he would also need to figure out how to move mana around his body more effectively to use what he has in his manaheart for anything beyond basic enhanced vitality and the reduced need to eat and sleep. “So uhh… What sort of spells are they?” He asked as he looked over at the paper in her hands to try and understand what was written there but with little success.

“He said they were known as ‘Shield’ and ‘Magic Missile,’ though he also gave me some instructions for a cantrip known as ‘Prestidigitation,’ which is supposed to help me practice with all the intangible elements of magic.” Ren said before scratching her cheek and looking up at Krys again. “Earth magic is especially tricky for novices who don’t have an affinity with it.” She commented before looking back to the papers. “Through practicing with prestidigitation, I’ll be able to figure out what elements I’m best suited to use, and then I should be able to develop more combat magic based on what I learn from it and magic missile.”

Krys couldn’t help but glance at his team while wondering if they were getting any of this; he was met with Sera's thoughtfully furrowed brows and Zax's glazed-over expression, as he seemed to have decided not to follow the conversation at all.

Krys hummed for a moment as he considered what he understood. “Umm… Isn’t there any easier way to figure out what your strong suits are? Trial and error are all well and good, but wouldn’t it be best to develop your strengths early on instead of dipping your finger into everything?”

Krys watched Ren’s ears droop beneath her hood before tilting her head from side to side while her tail came to a stop. “I-I mean… Yeah, it would… B-but I don’t want to trouble you with that…” She said softly, distinct disappointment just dripping from her voice. “Cecil says using the magic tool that measures affinities is really expensive. Obsidian-ranked adventurers can have it done at a steep discount, and students at the magic academy can do it for free as part of their curriculum.”

Krys couldn’t help but cringe at the mention of money, his hand twitching to reach for his coin pouch but stopping himself so he didn’t give away its hiding spot. “I see... Well… Don’t worry about it, okay?” He said while reaching out to pat Ren’s upper back. “I’m sure that between whatever work Boss Vito has in store for us and the ‘business’ opportunities we come across here in the capital, we should have plenty of coin coming in. More so than we got back home.”

“S-sure.” Ren offers hesitantly before smiling a little more. “But in the meantime, I’ll do my best to work with what I have already.”

Krys pulled away, his mind wandering to the other thing she mentioned she needed for casting magic: a spell focus. He didn't know enough about magic users to understand what that fully entailed, but he knew it was likely that special stick or staff that mages tended to carry around. With a soft exhale through his nose and a flick of his ears, he turned his focus back to the moment while reaching into his hood to pull out the innocuous piece of paper he got from his home guild.

The slip of paper had a basic map drawn with a couple of symbols, numbers, and abbreviations that were meant to be street names. Krys had reviewed the information on the paper this morning, but now that he was walking the streets, he wanted to make sure they were still heading the right way.

"Are we good?" Zax piped up while peering over Krys' shoulder for a moment.

"Yeah, we're on the right track... The entrance should be up ahead in an alleyway... We're supposed to say we're there for an appointment and present that package we got." Krys explained quietly, double-checking the slip of paper before tucking it away again.

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With a grunt of understanding from Zax, the team proceeded forward until they came to the alleyway in question. Yet when they arrived, there was no point of contact or anything for them to approach. It was like it was just a normal alleyway.

"Are we getting punked, or did you read the map wrong?" Sera asked with growing agitation, her back pressed against the wall as she maintained watch, her head swiveling to each end of the alleyway while the others poked around.

Krys already had the slip of paper in hand, looking it over again as his eyes repeatedly darted from his surroundings and back down to the paper. "It doesn't make any sense. The layout of this alleyway perfectly matches the map; according to this, I should be standing right on top of the entrance." He says while thumping his foot against the stone floor to emphasize his point, the stone in questioning sounding like the rest of the alleyway around them.

"Maybe you're missing something," Ren offered thoughtfully as she approached Krys. "May I see the map?"

"Yeah, go for it." Krys said before holding the slip of paper down to her and watching as her brows furrowed with thought.

Ren appeared to thoroughly study the paper in her hands as she looked between it and their surroundings before offering the paper back up to Krys and pointing at some numbers next to an abbreviation. "Have you figured out what these lead to? I recognize all the other letters as the street names of the path we took to get here from the capital gates, but we haven't encountered whatever these numbers lead to."

Krys couldn't help but blink a few times at the realization as he looked over the slip of paper again. "Y-you're right; I figured since we found the marked location already, we might have just skipped an unnecessary step..." He considered before looking back at the way they came. "Let's head back out on the street."

Now back among the crowds, Krys led his team down the street connected to the alleyway they were just in. Studying the buildings in question, he spotted the numbers on their windowsills and realized that the numbers on his map were the address of their destination.

Continuing further down the road, he came across a Cobbler set up beside the entryway in the alley they had been at earlier. "This must be the place," Krys said aloud, more for himself than for his team, as he pushed the door open, holding it for Ren until Jax stepped closer and held it for Sera; the trio dispersed and spread around the shop while Ren grabbed at Krys' cloak and stayed by his side.

At the counter, a bubbly and vibrant-looking young human woman with bright blonde hair piped up with a pleasant smile on her face. "Welcome to Milro's Cobbler House; we handle everything from sandals to shoelaces; how may we help you today?"

Of course, Krys was not expecting such a colorful figure to be manning what is essentially a guild entrance, but he did his best to take it in stride as he walked up to the counter with Ren in tow. "Hello, we have an appointment," he said probingly before reaching into his satchel and placing the still-sealed package on the counter.

The young woman maintained her smile as she looked the package over, glancing around at Krys' team and Ren before pushing the package back towards Krys. "Of course, right this way." she said while moving towards the back of the shop.

After glancing at his team and nodding to each other, Krys collected the package and tucked it away again before following the young woman.

They were quickly led through an actual cobbler's workshop, where an older-looking gnome was stabbing a thick needle into a piece of leather, seemingly ignorant of the strangers in his workshop. At the same time, they made their way to a door that should lead to the alleyway by Krys' reckoning. However, instead of going through the door right away, the young woman grabs a crystal sconce on the wall, twisting the light fixture until it is upside down before grabbing it like a lever and lifting it straight up.

Both Krys and Ren's ears perked at once as they heard things shifting around at their feet. After mere seconds, the movement began, and everything suddenly went still.

The young woman looked clearly amused as she gestured to the door. "Head straight down, take the left passageway, and wait in the room from the third door on your right; the Guild Master would like to meet you all."

Krys was about to thank the young woman for her guidance, but his words got caught in his throat, and he couldn't help but stare wide-eyed from under his hood. "T-the Guild Master? As in... The main boss? The one in charge of all of us?" He had been under the impression that he would meet a branch manager or maybe just a handler who would be their general liaison to overall guild affairs and business. But the Guild Master?

The woman maintained her ever-pleasant smile as her eyes narrowed like a predator gazing upon prey. “The one and only, at least for our country.” She mused with a head tilt before gesturing to the door again. “The sooner you get going, the sooner I can notify them of your arrival.”

“R-right. Of course.” Glancing at his team, Krys reached for the door to the alleyway and pulled it open, revealing an enclosed stone staircase leading down into a fairly well-lit corridor.

Leading his team down the stairs, they come into a small lobby with a cozy-looking sitting area where a few rogues are casually conversing about this and that. They spared Krys and his team a glance but immediately returned to their business.

Making their way to the left corridor, they passed by a number of other corridors leading away to who knows where until they finally came across the third door on their right and stepped inside.

They found a small, cozy-looking waiting room painted in shades of earthy browns and furnished with gray couches that lined the walls. With cursory glances aside, Krys took a seat, patting with a tired huff as he pulled his hood back, freeing his ears as they wiggled and adjusted themselves now that they weren't restrained by the fabric.

Ren took her place beside Krys, still looking around the little room with curious uncertainty after pulling her own hood back. For his part, Zax just flopped onto one of the couches, getting nice and comfortable despite the circumstances, while Sera sat on the couch armrest beside Krys and began almost immediately toying with one of his ears by poking at it to make them flick around and twitch.

The team sat in relative silence for a few minutes until Ren decided to pipe up while looking at Krys. "So... Um... Is it a big deal that you will be meeting with the Guild Master?"

Sera just scoffed while suddenly leaning on and over Krys' shoulders and the back of the couch, looking down into Ren's eyes with an amused look on her face. "Is it a big deal? I'd say that's the understatement of the decade. The Guild Master is the leader of the Thieves Guild as a whole. Sure, smaller factions within the guild operate on their own terms, but the Guild Master has the final say on any major order."

Krys nodded slowly, leaning his head back against Sera's flat stomach while looking at Ren. "While I don't exactly know how it works in other countries, our Guild Master holds a place on the Under Council, a collection of Guild Masters who have a hold over most organized crime in this country."

Ren could only nod along as she did her best to absorb all the information coming her way. "Okay, so they do sound very important... What other guilds are part of this Under Council?"

Before they could respond, Zax released a soft snore, clearly showing how relaxed he was in the face of what was about to happen.

Krys couldn't help but let out a sigh as an amused smile came to his face. After taking a moment to collect his thoughts, he regarded Ren again. "Well... There are quite a few guilds... There are the Poisoners, Counterfeiters, Assassins, Information Brokers, and the Smugglers." He explained while counting them out on his fingers before raising a finger on his other hand. "And, of course, the Thieves." He added as he let his hands fall back into his lap.

"That's quite a lot... I didn't expect your line of work to have such an... Umm... Diverse workforce." Ren admitted as she glanced around the cozy waiting room.

Sera piped up at that as she began absently stroking Krys' hair. "Yeah, and while we often cooperate between the various guilds when it comes to the jobs we perform, we keep everything separate and broken into even smaller factions within the guilds to ensure that if any of us get caught for whatever reason, we don't bring down the rest of the guilds with us."

"Oh! So you run on a decentralized system?" Ren piped up enthusiastically.

Krys and Sera share a glance, not having realized there was an actual word for how their guilds were set up. "Uh... Yeah, I suppose." Krys offered with a vaguely thoughtful look on his face as he scratched his cheek.

Suddenly, Krys' ears perked at the door opening. He turned to follow his ears, spotting a particularly short, cloaked figure whose face was entirely shrouded by shadow despite the thorough illumination of the waiting room. "The Guild Master will see you now if you'll follow me."

"Right, let's get going, then." Krys said as he waited for Sera to get off him before standing and getting Zax to his feet; they followed the cloaked little man to wherever the Guild Master was.