The sun had already set when Eranae and Pearl reached the city. The hunter had given them a ride to the main market, where they parted ways. The main market was the largest locality of the rather small city of Ilnanar. Calling the settlement a city was a stretch by itself. It was, Eranae, considered, a small town at most. She had seen districts in Nydekar that were larger than this whole city. But being situated in a narrow inlet of sea, Ilnanar's small size wasn't at all out of the ordinary.
The city's main purpose was to act as port in the natural harbour formed by the fjord and to facilitate trade in the southern edge of the continent. The permanent population here was pretty low and most of the city's crowd was formed by traders and travellers. After Nanar, the most widespread people here were the Temeri of course, but Cerhin or Veshari faces weren't all that uncommon. Most of these people came to the city to conduct business and leave within a couple of days. This made inns and guesthouses quite easy to find around the town.
After looking out for a while, Pearl found a place run by an old couple. It was a large two storeyed guesthouse, not very far from the market. One might even say that it was almost in the market. The large number of customers made it safe enough to assume that the establishment was a decent one, especially for the low amount of money they charged. After Eranae checked it out, they rented two adjacent rooms for one day. They planned to rest for the night and look for a ship the next morning. It was a reasonable course of action since they were exhausted by the long journey.
After placing their travelling packs in the rooms, Eranae and Pearl headed out to the marketplace to buy dinner. Cook shops were a common sight in ports like these since they were cheaper and more convenient than eating at an inn. A line of them, each selling different types of food items were lined in a market street. Smells of meat and broth and baking bread filled the air.
The two of them had decided to separate and buy whatever they wanted to eat, then meet at one of the public benches present at the circle where the street opened. The place was designed for people to sit and dine.
Era decided to have a classical Cerhin meal and went to the stall selling spiced meat and buttered bread. The streets were beginning to get crowded and hence there was a short line at almost each stall. But that didn't stop Eranae. It was a new experience for her. Most of her life, she had spent being surrounded by servants and maids who took care of the more mundane aspects of her routine. This, however, somehow felt liberating. Even more so than travelling in the forest with an almost stranger.
After buying the desired items, Era also went to a wine seller's stall and got a cup of medium-priced blue wine, like the ones they drank in Renkaya. Being a songmaster, lifesong prevented her from getting intoxicated, but she enjoyed the fruity bittersweet taste of the drink. As she began walking back to the circle where they had decided to meet, Era sensed someone watching her. Her instincts told her to draw the macana and charge head on. But she dismissed it as mere paranoia and continued walking.
Pearl sat at the table where they had decided to meet. On the table lay a container made of leaves placed over a jute table mat, it had two steamed fish pieces on it with a bowl of broth beside. Eranae placed her food on the table mat and took a seat opposite to Pearl.
"Chicken and butterbread," Pearl noted, "Feeling homesick, are we?"
"That's one way to phrase it," Eranae said as she began eating. Pearl followed her lead and did the same. They ate in silence for some while until Pearl spoke up after taking a sip of his broth.
"Do you get the feeling of being watched?" He asked.
"You…" Era almost choked on her food, "You sense that too?"
"Yes, and it's really weird." Pearl replied.
"Is it because I'm standing out?" Era asked, "I mean, due to my hair?"
"Nonsense," Pearl refuted, "I just saw half a dozen Renkayans in the next street."
"I think we are being followed," Era suggested, "Or more specifically, I am being followed."
"By who…" Pearl gobbled up the last piece of fish, "Could it be Elaia?"
"It is a possibility." Eranae answered, "There's one way to find out."
Finishing her meal, she rose from her seat. "Watch my back."
Eranae began walking away from the circle, making her way in the direction where the crowds were thinning. She sensed Pearl follow her from a distance. It would have been better if Rel was awake to act as an intermediary for them to communicate. Either way, she trusted Pearl to not lose sight of her as she walked into the darker section of the town, weaving a path through the shadowy alleyways.
After deciding that she had wandered enough, she chose an alley with a deadend and walked into it. On reaching the end, she finally got what she was waiting for. A pair of footsteps entered the alley. The moonlight revealed that they belonged to a Temeri man in ragged clothing. He stopped when he got close enough to not be noticed, by a normal person at least. Eranae, with her senses enhanced by lifesong, had already noticed him. She realised that the man must not be a native because if he was, he wouldn't have followed her into a deadend.
Pearl entered the alleyway after a couple of moments, to block off the man's exit route.
"Why are you following me?" Eranae asked in Temerish.
The man didn't answer and tried to run, but Pearl stood at the entry point. Although he was a bit shorter than Eranae, he still was tall by average standards and had a somewhat imposing aura due to his eerie grey eyes and intricately braided hair. The Temeri man didn't dare confront him directly.
"We have you cornered." Era told him, "So speak up."
"No," the man said in Cerhini, "We have you cornered."
Two burly men entered the alleyway and stood behind Pearl. They held truncheons in their hands.
"Well," Eranae sighed, "This is going to get ugly."