Feeling the supple, slightly cool body of the female Dragonborn in his arms, Renato drew a deep breath and patted her back, signaling for her to let go. At the same time, he turned his head, glanced toward the main road, and asked in a low voice:
"Well? Has Novak gone far enough?"
"That human knight has reached the city gate and is preparing to leave. He should no longer be able to detect our conversation."
The familiar telepathic voice sounded directly in his mind, carrying Klauthsura's usual steady cadence, without a trace of tension or urgency.
The female Dragonborn released her arms in response, stepped back twice, and turned to walk into the inn.
Renato followed her, pulling the inn's wooden door shut behind him.
The furnishings inside the Burning Wood Inn were just as they had always been. The tables and chairs remained where they had been when he left that morning, with several round stools sitting askew beside the table legs.
Only Matt, the innkeeper who had always sat at the front desk, seemed to be absent. Renato held his breath and listened for a moment, but heard no sounds of movement or work.
There was no sign of anyone else moving about on the inn's ground floor. Occasionally, the low voices of Nittel's guards drifted in from the distant streets outside, while the rumble of wheels over paving stones approached and gradually faded away.
Seeing that no one was around, he took the initiative and asked the female Dragonborn:
"Klauthsura, weren't you following me earlier? Why didn't I hear from you after I left the Royal Palace? I thought something might have happened..."
Klauthsura kept walking as her voice continued to sound in Renato's mind, explaining:
"The Royal Palace contains numerous magical alarms and detection devices.