Renato stood at the entrance to a narrow lane in the Shantytown. As the sun sank, the light began to fade.
He had accepted a [Quest] from the Adventurers' Guild, posted by City Hall's acting Speaker, to maintain public order and crack down on criminal organizations.
It sounded grand, but the work was simple: stand guard outside the slums. Renato guessed Baron Atwood had hanged too many City Guard officers, leaving them so badly understaffed that they had to hire adventurers to "outsource" the job for now.
The reward was only one silver coin and 200 experience points. Perly needed to study and couldn't join him, and there were no decent commissions on the quest board that he could take alone, so Renato had settled for this one.
Back in Brekka Town, he had accepted quests worth just a few dozen experience points. Now he was actually getting picky.
Reflecting on that, Renato put the Voice of the Dragon back into his Bag of Holding, then tightened his grip on his sword hilt and looked toward the approaching figure.
"Renato, what are you doing hanging around this godforsaken place?"
It was Kira, the female thief. She wore a thin Wool Coat, her nose red from the cold and both hands tucked into her sleeves.
Renato released his sword hilt and answered:
"An Adventurers' Guild quest. Why else would anyone want to stay here?"
"Good thing it's winter. With the stench of rot and shit in the Shantytown in summer, a day here would knock you out!"
A bell rang in the distance, announcing nightfall and marking the end of Renato's quest.
"Adventurers get guard duty too? I thought that was the City Guard's job." Kira approached and ran her hand over Renato's Breastplate, exclaiming, "You enchanted your armor? Gods, how