I head to the boarding house I used last night afterwards. Ludmilla, the woman running it is back on her chair by the front door. I pay another coin and receive a key in exchange once more. The proprietress leaves her post by the door just long enough to show me to the right door. Then she leaves me alone.


    The door of course isn''t the same one as last night and the same is true for the room behind it. It might as well be though. It''s just as small as the one last night was. It''s just as clean too though and that is the only thing that really matters right now.


    Without delay I settle down for the night to get some sleep. I will be back on my feet before long after all, thus every hour I can get in now matters. Thankfully sleep comes quick to me this time around. Thus I''m moderately well rested by the time a series of soft knocks wakes me back up.


    I grab my half empty pack and my weapons and open the door just a little. I don''t leave my sword behind today. An unfamiliar person is waiting for me in the hallway on the other side. I can''t exactly make out many details in the dark hallway, but I''m pretty certain that they are even shorter than me.


    “Viviona?”


    The voice suggests that I''m dealing with a woman though and not a girl. She sounds smoky. Come to think of it, she smells a little like smoke too.


    I only nod at first, before I realize that she might not be able to see the gesture.


    “Yes, that''s me. You a friend of Sylwia?”


    She too nods.


    “That I am. Call me Matylda. I''ll wait outside.”


    Without any further words and not waiting for a reply she leaves.


    I quickly lock the door of my room and follow her.


    The lady by the entrance is only pretending to be asleep. And she gives up even that pretense as I pass her.


    “You know the drill. The room is your until noon. No longer. Have fun.”


    I nod and join my guild sponsored guide who is waiting for me just a few steps further down the road. I quickly catch up with her and as I do I take this opportunity to get a better look.


    My initial suspicion seems to be on spot. She may be shorter than me, but she certainly isn''t younger. Without using [Identify] I can''t be entirely sure of course, but I''d wager money that she is a dwarf.


    Yes, she reminds me very much of the proprietress of the used clothes store where I got my cloak, the Flea and Flotsam. She has the same strong shoulders and similarly impressive hair. Overall I would say that she isn''t related though.


    She shoots me a curious glance too, as I eye her up, but just like me she doesn''t use an identification skill. Nice. It seems good manners aren''t a totally lost cause yet, even among thieves and scoundrels.


    I decide to pose a quick question before we can cover much more ground.


    “So, where are we heading? Someplace out here? Or will we have to cross the wall?”


    She nods in the direction of the wall.


    “We''ll go over the wall. I''ve picked a spot already. Knowing the schedule of both the guard and the night watch we should be able to avoid one and the other.”


    I raise an eyebrow, even if she probably can''t see the gesture.


    “You trust the guards to be on schedule?”


    She lets out a laugh. A pleasant, full bodied and hearty sound.


    “I''d agree with you if it were about anything else but their patrols up on the wall. They do stick to their schedule up there. The ones who don''t cut into their own nap time as well as that of the neighboring towers after all. The ones who slack off, more than usual anyway, up there don''t stay with the guard for long.”


    She snorts in amusement and shakes her head.


    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    “Peer pressure at its best. But never mind these morons. I know the best time and spot to get inside. And I know where we have to go. I hope you won''t slow me down.”


    I flash her a toothy grin. That one she can see for sure.


    “I''ll do my best. So, about the game? Anything I should know?”


    She looks over at me while we make out way through the narrow streets of the district outside the walls.


    “Right, you are taking Barandon''s place. I usually don''t like short notice changes like this, but I guess it can''t be helped. Anyway, I can''t say that I miss him. Not without lying at least. We''ll be waiting next door, to arrive just in time when two others tap out of the game eventually.”


    I nod.


    “I take it those two will have lost all, or at least most of their coin by then? To lull the whales into a false sense of security?”


    She nods as we stop by the wall.


    “Whales? What a curious term. Curious but fitting I guess. But that is pretty much the intention. By then they should have had enough to drink to lower their guard a little further too. Anyway, up you go.”


    I take a deep breath and eye up the wall in search for the best handholds. I have not trouble spotting some that look decent enough. Even better, it feels like my [Perception] improves a little too, as I do. Without any further delay I scale the wall. Which in turn helps improve [Climbing] some more.


    Once I''m up on the battlement I wait for Matylda to catch up with me. It doesn''t take her long. Unlike me on my first trip she isn''t in a hurry to leave right away. Instead she continues her explanation, as we walk along the battlement for a little.


    “We keep losing a little at first too. We don''t want to turn the tables on them too fast after all. We want to keep them thinking that they can still win the game. In the long run though the goal is to make sure they don''t walk out with any coin left in their purses.”


    She snickers.


    “Make them bet their cloaks or boots if you get a chance. And if one of them decides to make a fuss, which is a possibility, you are the one who will take over. Try to talk them back down, if you can. We really don''t want any bloodshed on this gig.”


    Finally we seem to have reached the right spot and we stop. Matylda stops to size me up once more.


    “You have done a rooftop run before, right?”


    I tilt my head slightly.


    “Can you even become an apprentice without making at least one trip across the rooftops?”


    She shrugs, but relaxes.


    “In theory, if you are really sneaky and know the routes of the night watch really well, you could cross the city to the temple at street level. Never mind though. I know where we are going. Watch me closely and keep up.”


    Before I can get in a word sideways she takes off at a run. Her speed takes me by surprise. At least a little. Considering that she is shorter than me I really didn''t expect her to be this fast.


    I don''t have any time to dwell on this anyway, as I''m hard pressed to keep up with her. The fact that I have to watch closely where she places her steps too doesn''t exactly help either.


    Well, it doesn''t help with my thinking. It certainly helps improve [Perception] a little further, along with [Running] and [Jumping], as we cross a good part of the city, running across the rooftops.


    At long last she slows down again and so do I. I can''t help but notice that we did not get close to the glow emitted by the lamps of the patrolling men and women of the night watch once. It seems she picked our route with them in mind. That probably is the reason why she went so fast. Otherwise she would in all likelihood have moved slower but stealthier.


    Finally, as we make our way across one last rooftop, aiming for one of the dormer windows I receive one of the notifications I''m longing for.


    [*Ding!* Your skill Balance has leveled up to level 6!]


    It isn''t my highest level skill, but the divine whisper is still quite welcome. A moment later another follows.


    [*Ding!* Your skill Streetwise has leveled up to level 5!]


    Well, yes, I have certainly become a little more familiar with the rooftop highway.


    A little ahead of me, by the side of the dormer window, Matylda is waiting for me. She puts a finger to her lips, signaling for me to be quiet now. It seems the time for [Stealth] to shine has finally come. Using a small knife she leverages the window open and together we slip in, before she closes it again.


    The attic room we are in is dark, but not dusty. It seems to see regular cleaning. It isn''t exactly silent either. I can hear the murmur of excited conversation from the direction of a door leading to another room under the same roof. That isn''t all either. I can hear music too. Just someone playing a lute or a similar instrument though and no singing.


    Carefully placing each and every step I follow Matylda to the door. Beyond another, similar room awaits us. The greatest difference is the hatch leading down here. This hatch isn''t our destination though. In fact a heavy looking chest is blocking it. The ladder that goes with it has been pulled up too and leans against a wall next to it now. It seems the people meeting up here want to remain undisturbed.


    I can get away from here anyway just fine and the same is true for any of the other guild associates involved in this. Of that I''m sure. How do the rich kids mentioned by Sylwia expect to get out of here though if they are found out? Ha, never mind. That isn''t my problem.


    Matylda leads me across the room to the wall, and the door in it, anyway. The noise coming from the next room over is a bit louder here. Loud enough for me to pick out individual voices. I can hear Sylwia too. Overall there seem to be quite a few people present though.


    My dwarfen companion, still not saying a word, motions for a spot where some of the plaster of the wall has come off. While I go for it, she moves to a similar spot on the other side of the door. It turns out to be a peephole of sorts, except, it really is barely a crack in the wall. It affords me a very narrow, partial view of the room beyond anyway.


    As I watch the proceedings in the next room I quickly become aware of what may be a serious problem in Sylwia''s plan. Of course she and probably everyone else assumed that I knew how to play the card game they are running in there. I have no clue though. Not yet anyway.


    Instead I play close attention. Thankfully the two we are supposed to replace are not yet ready to tap out, so I get to watch several more games. And as I do my worries quickly fade.


    The game seems similar enough to poker. The cards are different of course, using the four elements fire, water, wind and earth instead of the colors I''m familiar with, but that seems to just about be about it. Yes, I''m sure of it now. This shouldn''t be too hard.


    I watch on anyway. And so does Matylda After all I it is only sensible to get familiar with the quirks of the other players a little. My [Gather Information] skill improving a little seems to agree with me.