Thornhand's eyes twinkled. "You are right to speak quietly about such things, my Lady," he said, recognizing her hesitance. "The talk is that other mercenaries are quite wound up lately. If they heard that there was another group stealing quests out from under them at such an alarming rate, they would be sure to protest."
"But there are so many of them already," Penelope said.
"The typical mercenary band would take one job a week, at most, I'd think, my Lady," Thornhand said. "The risks of each quest would weigh heavily on them. To do one each day, as I assume you have been – that would be impossible. To do two a day would be otherworldly. Even if there are enough quests to go around, you'll still earn their ire, and they'll accuse you of stealing all the easy ones. It's not a favourable position to be in, not when they are already angry."
