Bleist, and wiping old tankards with an equally dirty cloth. In the chair in front of him sat another man, but he looked worse than his host. His clothes were torn and he was barefoot.
Bleist shifted his gaze to the group sitting at the table opposite the fireplace, on which a fire was buzzing merrily despite the high temperature, and a roast was turning on a spit. The men who sat there looked as if they had ended up here by pure chance. They wore travelling clothes and had sabres at their belts. Darius could bet that each had at least one loaded pistol. They looked alike, like brothers or cousins, although the mage concluded after a moment that this impression might be given by their sumptuous moustaches.
The magician approached the bar and fixed his gaze on the man standing in front of him.
-What would you wish, noble sir,- the host smiled, but that smile did not extend to his eyes. He seemed to be trying to guess what the stranger was doing here, whether he would cause trouble and how much money he would leave.
-A beautiful young woman came here recently.- Bleist looked into the innkeeper's eyes.-Knowing her, she was armed to the teeth and did not look like a regular in such places. She had rented a room.
The innkeeper turned pale and began wiping his dirty tankard more vigorously. Loud conversation and laughter came from the side of the fireplace. The man nodded and opened his mouth, took a deep breath and hesitated. He looked at the group of nobles.
-On the upper floor.-He choked out.-The second chamber on the right honourable sir....
Bleist threw a coin on the tabletop, turned and walked quickly upstairs. When he found himself in front of the door the innkeeper had spoken of he stopped and breathed deeply several times.
-You only die once,- he muttered under his breath as he grasped the handle.-As they say here.
He opened the door with a sweeping motion and stepped inside without thinking. The room was small. A bed stood
