They still had Jints' money, but everything else was gone, spent on Hepp's healing. Hepp looked grateful and embarrassed as they all stared at the one gold, several silver, and three copper coins in Jints' money pouch.

  "We need to make some money."

  Zig said the obvious. The question was, what would they do? Check the local adventurers guild for quests? They needed to come up with something fast. Zig felt an uncomfortable tugging on his heart. A desire that burned in him. A desire that didn't belong to him.

  Find Beefcake Jones. Take his money pouch. Bring it to the healer.

  "We need to find Beefcake Jones."

  Zig started ticking items off his fingers.

  "We need to make money. We need to learn more about the academy for Lady Jane. We need to find somewhere to stay, while we're in Liston."

  "I will look into the issue of money, mister Zig, along with our lodgings. Would you adventurers like to try the guild? Or head straight for mister Jones?"

  "That's Jints. We'll try... the guild. Ugh. This feeling is disgusting. Let's never talk to that healer lady again. Who would have skills like that?"

  "Who would sign a contract in blood, Zig?"

  "It was for you, Hepp! We were in a bind. I'd do it again. I think. It's just..." Zig ground his teeth in frustration. They needed money. They needed to go to the guild. As soon as possible! There was no way the Red Daggers would be sleeping on the streets, and with only one gold split between five people and a horse, that was a frighteningly close reality.

  "Let's go to the guild, and ask about Beefcake. Ha! Two birds, one arrow." Hepp suggested.

  As soon as the thought came into Zig's mind, he relaxed with relief. There was no longer a tension pulling against his decision to go to the guild. It was terrifying how much that contract was holding onto his mind, pulling at his soul.

  "Great idea, Hepp, that helps a lot. In fact, everything I do from now on needs to be framed that way. All roads head toward mister Beefcake. Let's go. We'll take Teeth for backup. Lady Jane, would you like to check out the academy?"

  Lady Jane smiled in a bittersweet way. All her dreams were so close, but she'd seen the money pouch.

  "I will see what we're facing in terms of the academy. Thank you, Zig. I can't believe I'm in Liston. We've already come so far."

  Three youths were watching the band part ways from a distance.

  "Them, Knob?"

  "One of them, for sure. I couldn't say which though. Must be hiding it. Gutters, you feel anything?"

  Gutters shook his head.

  "I'd say these weren't the ones we're looking for. Except for that horse. You seen those teeth? I can't believe the guards let that in the city. They barely tolerate us."

  Gutters spat onto the alley floor. The other two hawked and spat in solidarity.

  "So who do we follow? Looks like they're going three separate ways. Sniffs?"

  Sniffs sniffed.

  "Lady walked too fancy. Can't be our target. Man too. Smells wrong. I think we need to follow the three. And that damned horse."

  The youths waited a beat, then slunk out of the alley and blended into the crowd in the streets.

  Liston was a lot bigger than Lancre. Zig practiced his reading by learning what all the signs meant.

  "What's that?"

  "That's the word for runners, Zig. If you need word sent somewhere. You can give them a letter or package, or just ask them to pass on a message."

  "Cool, very cool. What's that?"

  "Which, oh that's the word for meat. A butchershop I guess."

  "Cool, cool, and that?"

  "That's... a picture of a bridge, Zig. I'm guessing there's a bridge that way."

  Sure enough, there was a bridge spanning a wide river that wove through the heart of Liston. It was quite beautiful, and Zig would loved to have stayed there.

  Find Beefcake Jones. Get Money. Deliver to healer.

  It was grating on his nerves. He hated how much he wanted to do it. He kept walking, and the feeling subsided as he stopped thinking about lingering at the bridge.

  "Ok, adventurers guild, adventurers guild... There!"

  Zig brought Teeth into the guild stables, and the adventurers went inside. It was similar to Lancre's guild, just four times larger. A common room filled the ground floor, along with a desk and a quest board. Steps led up to private rooms, and there was a bar where people could order drinks and food.

  Zig tried not to be self-conscious as he walked in. He felt like everyone in the guild was sizing him up. Must be an adventurer thing. They walked up to the desk where a surprisingly young woman was sitting.

  "Ho, guildmaster! My name's Zig, and we are the Red Daggers. We're visiting Liston, and..."

  Zig trailed off because the woman had breathed in some of her drink. She was hacking and laughing and coughing and everybody in ear shot was grinning and nudging each other.

  "I'm, ahem, not the guildmaster. I'm just the secretary. Name's Lara. But I can see how you'd make the mistake."

  She flashed a smile at Zig, and coughed a bit more.

  "What can I do for you folks?"

  "We're looking to do some quests, especially the higher earning ones if possible. We're also looking for someone..."

  Zig leaned closer.

  "Have you heard of a man called Beefcake Jones?"

  Lara's mirth faded.

  "Yea I've heard the name. What's it to you?"

  "We're looking for him, on a quest of sorts."

  "You a friend of his?"

  "Not exactly, no."

  Lara looked at the Red Daggers, sizing them up. She shrugged.

  "Well, the quest board is over there on the wall. Take your pick. As for your second inquiry, go to the middle district and find the most worthless piece of lowlife you can. Chances are high he works for old Beefcake. Fight well, Red Daggers, he's no lightweight."

  Zig thanked her and they went to look at the quests. Zig felt that buzzing in his mind again, as they looked at the quest board. A headache, a tension, a growing discomfort.

  "Get something in middle district," he hissed at the others, "something that will bring us close to Beefcake."

  As he phrased it like that, the tension faded again. He wondered if it was ok to murder a healer.

  "Here's one," Gretta was lifting a piece of paper off the wall. "Kill whoever is making grip in middle district. Bring proof. Five gold pieces. Zig, this is far more than we've earned in Lancre!"

  Love what you're reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

  "Big city quests offering big city money eh?" Hepp whistled at the number written on the paper.

  "That's perfect. What's grip?"

  "Bad potion, Zig. Makes you happy for an hour, makes you sad for a day. The only thing that takes away the sad is another swig of grip."

  "Oh. Drugs. You guys have drugs in this world. Sounds addictive and evil. That's perfect. Exactly where we'd find Beefcake, isn't that what Lara said? Let's go."

  Lady Jane walked halls lined with carved marble pillars. Her footsteps were muffled by the red carpet running down the center of the hallway. The building didn't whisper of money. It shouted rather loudly. It was the kind of place Lady Jane was tired of. The kind of place she'd run away from. She'd run away from this place, too, if it weren't for the little creatures she saw occasionally, drifting through the halls.

  Water elementals.

  They had a shapeless head of water, two arms, and a torso that tapered into a cone of mist that almost touched the floor. They were of varying sizes, but most were about knee height. They seemed to be the servants of these halls, going to and fro carrying various objects. Lady Jane's heart skipped a beat each time she saw them. Water magic. This was it. This was the place she'd dreamed of since she was sixteen.

  She finally reached a reception desk, and saw the well-dressed man behind the counter. He arched an eyebrow and looked down and Lady Jane's shoes, then back up to her face in an instant. She felt like he'd just examined her thoroughly and dismissed her completely in that one look. Her heart sank. Her mother used to look at her like that. Before selling her for a piece of land in Grimsby.

  This wasn't a good start.

  "Ho, sir, my name is L—Jane, my name is Jane. I would like to enquire about this academy, how one might join and study here."

  Another arched eyebrow.

  "This is Liston's mage academy, miss Jane. The second most prestigious academy in the Selwyn Empire, short only of Northsong itself. We have high standards and the threshold for entrance is a bit..." The man flicked his eyes up and down Jane again. "...out of reach."

  Jane flushed.

  "How out of reach? Please sir, I have an Advanced Water Affinity skill already."

  That made him do a double take, which was quite satisfying for Lady Jane. No. Not Lady, just Jane. He man's icy stare softened a bit.

  "My congratulations, miss Jane. That would qualify you entrance certainly, in terms of talent. Unfortunately, for the upkeep of this establishment, the entrance fee is 50 gold. Upon entrance, each spell offered at the academy costs a fee of 100 gold per tier of spell. As I said, out of reach. Good day, miss Jane. May you find what you are looking for elsewhere."

  Miss Jane kicked a water elemental on the way out. Just a small one. It burst into a puddle on the floor. The plate it'd been carrying fell down, and the scone upon it rolled out into the puddle.

  Jane kicked the scone, too.

  Jints strolled along the market stalls. His eyes wandered, and he immediately started identifying the worth of items and comparing them to the prices on display. He shook his head. To buy and sell would make a tidy profit, but only if he had the capital to buy in the first place. Stealing and underhanded dealings were not on the table, either. They needed good reputation in Liston, for Lady Jane's long-term stay at the academy. Plus Jints' own moral code was growing a backbone. He'd done his share of disreputable things under Lord Jorst, and it wasn't the sort of man he'd like to be. Jints liked to think that at any time a man can choose what kind of person he'd be henceforth.

  So trading and stealing were out. But Jints had a good feeling about the Red Daggers. When you had Legendary, Extreme, and multiple Advanced people all grouped together, there was no way the coffers could stay empty for long.

  Jints kept walking, seeing the local trade goods that were bought and sold, and the prices they were traded at. He noticed a higher amount of magical goods were in Liston than he'd seen at any other city. Including...

  Jints walked past an alchemist's stall. Racks of potions were neatly laid out, with little cards describing each potion. He glanced at one.

  Minor healing potion

  Scratches, burns, cuts, and bloodloss.

  2 gold

  "Ho, mister alchemist!"

  "Ho, stranger, care to buy a potion? Something for thinning hair perhaps?"

  Jints immediately disliked and distrusted this man. He walked on and found another alchemist.

  "Ho, mister alchemist. I was just wondering, where do you get the herbs and plants required to make these potions?"

  "Ho there, you an alchemist?"

  "No, no, just a man interested in plants."

  The man was kind enough to direct Jints to a merchant that dealt with high-value herbs and plants. Jints eyed the goods, already cut and bundled up.

  "Ho good sir, I'm looking for plants still in the soil, as it were. I need living plants for my master. Any idea...?"

  Eventually, Jints found himself standing in a small glasshouse. Shelves on either side of him contained rows and rows of potent herbs growing in pots. Jints saw the prices and raised his eyebrows so high they were in danger of leaving his forehead.

  "Fifteen silver for a handful of willowgrass? I saw the same amount at market for half the price!"

  The botanist chuckled at that.

  "These are unharvested, you see? I've a few farmers who come in here with Advanced Harvesting. Triples the output."

  Huh. Jints was not the first to think of this. Still, Legendary was not Advanced. Jints thanked the man and offered certain services. For a price.

  Zig, Hepp, and Gretta were walking towards the middle district. It was aptly named, being in the middle of Liston. As they walked, Hepp was describing the wonderful world of Extreme Endurance.

  "I feel I could run all day. Full sprint. Is this what you feel all the time, Zig? Oh, Gretta, you better get back to your pushups. You're not going to miss this."

  Gretta was holding back a smile.

  "What says I don't already have it?"

  "What? You, no, when?"

  "Trying to lift a shield to save your sorry butt, Hepp. I couldn't even stand up. You know how hard it is to lift a shield with dead arms? I got endurance instantly."

  Gretta had a sparkle in her eyes.

  "...I also got Strength."

  Zig and Hepp's cries of disbelief echoed down the alleyways of middle district. Gretta responded by grabbing both of them, one in each arm, and lifting them off the ground. It felt very strange to be lifted into the air by a dwarf. Gretta laughed and gave them a light toss.

  "I've been waiting a while to let you know. Didn't want to steal Hepp's thunder of being half-dead and everything."

  "Gretta you scoundrel! I'm so happy for you! You're what, three times stronger?"

  Gretta nodded.

  "Sounds about right, yea. But it compounds with Endurance. I can lift my best and keep lifting at that level for a long period."

  Gretta's smile couldn't be contained anymore. She grinned from ear to ear with pride at her achievement. Zig patted her back, half sincere, half extremely jealous. Legendarily jealous.

  They walked past some kids hanging out in an alley. They were dressed in rags, and looked at the adventurers sullenly.

  "Hey kids, we want to buy grip. Know where we can find someone?"

  Gretta tossed a copper. One kid snatched it out of the air, and Zig saw a flash of pale blue skin before the kid withdrew into the blanket he'd wrapped around himself.

  "Don't touch that stuff, do we?"

  One of the kids said, sniffing as he spoke. Perhaps he had a cold? He was the size of a young teen, but already had a healthy beard on his face.

  "Neither do you, I reckon. Why're you here? Looking for trouble?"

  Hepp's hand drifted towards his knife, Gretta's to her hammer. There was a tension in the air. The third kid cuffed the sniffing one over the head and spoke up.

  "We're not the gate keepers of middle district, feel free to look around. We'd warn you, though, there's monsters here."

  "Like goblins and trolls?" Zig asked. The boy flinched a little.

  "Like humans, mister Zig."

  The three youths froze at that, like deer in headlights.

  "Huh, touché I guess. Hey, how did you know my—"

  There was a flurry of movement and the three disappeared down the alley. Zig was scratching his head at the encounter.

  "Well that was weird. Some kind of name guessing skill? Huh. I wonder what the Legendary version would be like."

  They found another cluster of people on the street. This time there was no weird interaction.

  "Hey, know where I can buy some grip?" Gretta asked one of the men huddled on a street corner. He turned around and looked at the Red Daggers.

  "You're looking at him. Who's asking?"

  "The Red Daggers."

  "Never heard of 'em. You a gang?"

  "Maybe. What's it to you?"

  The group of men started spreading out, surrounding the three adventurers.

  "See, this here is Beefcake's territory. We don't take kindly to other gangs."

  "Oh! There's been a miscomm—"

  Zig frantically tried to de-escalate the situation, but he only got half a sentence out before a fist hit him in the side of the face. Hard. He spun and fell down. Hepp didn't take much longer. He didn't have his bow, as walking through town holding a giant bow was a bit too conspicuous. He did have a knife though, and he pulled it out. The gang members saw it, and all drew knives of their own.

  "You can put that away, and we'll do likewise, or this can get real bloody."

  Hepp slowly put his knife back in its sheath. The men chuckled and did the same. There seemed to be a code on the streets, at least. Gretta put her hammer away too. She didn't have her shield, it had been smashed to pieces when she took a blow from the troll. The fighting resumed, with Hepp going down next. Gretta lasted a bit longer than the boys, punching one of the men in the gut and making him collapse on the floor next to Zig and Hepp. But there were eight men. Each time a man kicked or punched her they swore, shaking their fists and feet in pain. But eventually she was hit too many times, and fell down to join her teammates.

  They weren't prepared. Zig cursed himself. What was he thinking? He wasn't. That was the problem. They should have been careful, equipped, ready. Instead, Zig just had this insane compulsion to run right into Beefcake's hideout and steal his money. He hadn't even brought Teeth with them, leaving the horse at the adventurers guild, since the alleyways were too narrow. He curled into a ball as the men gave a few more kicks to the fallen Red Daggers, before they laughed, took anything of value, and left them there on the street.

  The five Daggers met up at the water district. It was a sorry affair. Jints was as composed as ever, but Jane had tear streaks down her face. Zig, Hepp, and Gretta didn't have any broken bones, thankfully, but were each covered in bruises.

  They were not doing well.

  "Ah. I see things have taken a turn for the worse," Jints said with a grimace. "Let's take some time to regroup. Come, I've found a place for us to stay."

  He led them through town to an inn near a market square. It was a nice one, clean and well-lit. The innkeeper took one look at them and sent some workers to prepare baths. They were given hot stew and some bread, which did make things feel better. Still, the Red Daggers were down in the dumps.

  "The cost to stay here is a silver per night, per room. So we can have a room each for two nights with our current funds, or we can stay a week if we share two rooms. I assume we'd prefer the latter?"

  "I'd share one room, if you didn't mind my smell," Hepp said.

  "Two rooms," Gretta said quickly.

  "Two rooms it is." Jints inclined his head, and went to confirm things with the innkeeper.

  "We... need to get Beefcake..." Zig said carefully, navigating his way through whatever curse this was on his soul. "In a way that's successful. That means some equipment, some planning, some preparation."

  The curse let him have that, and the tension loosened. Zig sighed.

  "Then we need to kill that witch pretending to be a healer. Whatever Beefcake is like, she's worse."