Now, Faye had a new problem obstructing her from her goals. She needed money. Quite a bit of money...but where was she supposed to get it from??
Faye wasn't broke, she was beyond broke. The money she did have was attained through luck and a really tough fight. She had no idea where to go to look for a way to make money....
She wandered the streets silently as she weighed her options. She could gain a temporary menial job, as a barkeep or something along those lines for the mean time, but it would end up taking an incredible amount of time to make the money she needed. If this cry was anything like her old city, jobs like barkeep relied almost entirely on tips, and other small jobs were paid in copper.... On the bright side, she didn't need to eat or drink ; it seemed, at the moment. So, any money she would have to allot to those functions normally could instead be saved. The real problem was her lodgings. She couldn't afford to pay for lodging and still expect to save money quickly....
Then, Faye remembered something Ryder had told her when they first entered the city. The owner of the gooseberry inn was supposed to be open to exchanging favors for a stay in the rooms....that might actually work for her. If she could work out some sort of deal with the owner, then maybe she'd be able to save all the money she made on her own!
She made her way back through the city towards the gooseberry inn. As she turned the corner and the inn came into sight, she paused. Her face twisted as she listened to the rowdy crowd already beginning to file into the inn. With slumped shoulders and a sigh, she slowly approached the inn.
She hadn't met the owner of the inn the night before. She found him tending the bar alone today. He was and older human, perhaps middle aged. He was small in stature, but large in personality. He smiled and laughed with his patrons, and took the occasional drink with them as well. He seemed friendly with everyone at the bar and knew many by their first names.
Faye waited to approach until the man seemed to have a free moment.
"Excuse me?" She asked tentatively.
The man turned towards her with a smile and approached her. He leaned against the bar as he greeted her from the other side.
"Well, hello there! You, correct me if I'm wrong, but you are the new face in room three, yes?"
Surprised the man recognized her, Faye grew uneasy. She'd only stayed the night before and hadn't spoken to anyone aside from the barkeep. Since then she'd had very little interaction with anyone else in the inn.
The man smiled. "It's my job to know who's staying here, love. Dot be frightened."
She furrowed her brow, but decided not to press the issue.
"I heard I could get a discount while staying here? Maybe you have some work for me?" She chose her words carefully, not wanting to give the wrong impression. It wasn't unheard of for someone trying to scam an inn owner by trying to run their own prostitution business out of their building. She also didn't want him thinking she was trying to sell herself.
The man's brows lifted as he listened. "Eh? I heard yo already paid for three nights.
She nodded. "Yes, but I'm in need of some money and I don't think I'll be able to keep paying for lodging."
The man fiddled with his mustache, nodding along the Faye's answer.
"I see, I see. That is a pickle...Unfortunately, I'm not in need of anything at the moment...I usually have those that need a place to stay work for me as a barkeep, but I already have two working for me in this way. I can't really afford to have a third right now."
Faye sighed in disappointment as she listened to his explanation. His words trailed off as he watched her deflate.
"...How about we do this. You stay here for the three nights you've paid for, I'll try to find a way for you to make some money around here. If I can't figure out something for you to do for me, I'll keep an ear out for anything in the city that might interest you. In the mean time, I'll cut the fee for staying here for the next few weeks in half. One silver a night."
She nodded in agreement. Gratitude filled her. She decided then that if she was ever given the chance to repay the favor, she definitely would.
He extended his hand for a handshake. "I'm Cahrel Windbrook."
She shook his hand in return.
"Faye."
"I know."
"...."
After figuring out her lodgings, she paid for an additional ten nights with the one gold piece she had, Faye left the inn. She knew that sometimes butchers would pay good money for fresh hunted animals. She didn't have any traps, but she knew how to make some simple ones. She also could buy a few, though she wasn't sure if the price of them was worth it or not
She visited a couple different butchers she'd encountered in the city already and learned she could get roughly 2 copper per pound of meat if she sold her he hunted animals. She also learned that the hide could be sold for the same amount to a tanner, for small animals. Larger animals might have better prices, but there weren't too many large animals in the plains around the city.
The amount wasn't much, but it was something and it gave her a way to slowly build up her he capital she needed to join the adventuring hall.