In the meanwhile, the draw for the next round of the arm-twisting competition has occurred. This match will be the farmer who won the previous round against a contestant Guilliame and Dora have not seen compete before: a slightly smaller, middle-aged, Stemian man with a scar on his right cheek.

Upon seeing who drew the second black stone, Brock says, "This will be interesting. Pallo and I served in the army together. He is as tough as nails."

He then pulls two new tumblers out from under the bar before adding, "Would either of you like to bet against Pallo? A lion says he will beat that big farmer."

"The best way to double your money is fold it in half and put it back in your pocket - except for coins of course. They just don't leave your pocket."

[OOC: Brock looks at Guilliame strangely, most likely because he has never heard of money that folds.]

"I once saw a man with a gambling addiction who was so strong he could bend coins."

Brock chuckles and says "A neat trick, but I am not sure how useful that would be. The king does not really like people defacing his coins."

I smile as well. "Good luck with your bet Master Brock."

"Lets sit by the fire a while Guilliame."

Taking my pot, I move towards the fire taking care to skirt the vortex of the twister activity.

As Dora and Guilliame make their way over towards the young woman sitting near the fireplace, the arm-twisting bout continues.

The woman, really a girl in her teens from her youthful looks, seems little interested in the competition but neither is her concentration wholly taken with the fire. Instead she is looking at something small in her hands. When she becomes aware of your approach, she looks up, a wary look on her face.

"According to the innkeeper, you cannot carry weapons here," she states in rustic Stemian as she pockets the object that was the object of her attention.

Behind you, the arm-twisting competition finally reaches a result after what seems a longer tussle than usual.

[OOC: Both of you please make Perception checks and if you want your character to concentrate their attention on something specific, please let me know what it is.]

Try to spot what the woman had in her hands:

8

Quote from Guilliame >>

Try to spot what the woman had in her hands:

8

[OOC: Unfortunately, Guilliame was not able to see anything more than already described. You can roll again for Experience.]

5

Quote from Guilliame >>

5

[OOC: No experience, I'm afraid.]

"Yes that's right. Though I understand that you have only just arrived. Why do you carry such weapons, Miss ...?"

I focus on the young woman as she processes my question.

Perception

11

Insight

23

[OOC I got rather excited when I saw that I had rolled a 23 but then realised it was a typo remnant and the real score was 3.]

Quote from che_ja_pa >>

"Yes that's right. Though I understand that you have only just arrived. Why do you carry such weapons, Miss ...?"

I focus on the young woman as she processes my question.

Perception

11

What Dora saw:

[OOC: Dora caught a glimpse of what the woman was holding. From the brief glance it, incredibly, seemed to be faceted as if it was a clear gem of enormous proportions.]

Insight

23

The results of Dora's Insight check:

[OOC: The woman seems to be being forthright and honest in what she is saying, and you should act as such, but I will let you may make another roll to see if Dora can gain Experience.]

"Wilma," says the young woman in answer to Dora's first question. She then glances at the two spears casually and then at Dora as if she had just asked a stupid question. "For protection of course. We have come a long way."

Then she asks a question of her own: "And who might you be?"

"You can be leaving my sister alone," comes a gruff male voice suddenly from the region of the competitor's table.

The voice belongs to the man Brock previously pointed out as the other of the travellers. He is looking in your general direction, a scowl on his face and a large wooden mug held casually in his hand. He also looks a bit unsteady on his feet and his attention is mainly on Guilliame.

"Oh Canna, you fool," says the girl in reply. "Leave them be. They only be wanting to talk."

"Be careful what you say to members of the guard, lad.  We take an interest in those that visit these parts."

"Guard?" says the young woman in surprise. "What do you mean by guard?"

[OOC: Andrew, just for the sake of it, I would like you to roll an Intimidation check for Guilliame. The DC to beat is 10 and you may roll at Advantage.]

"Miss Wilma, Master Canna, we are of the city watch, this is Guilliame and I am Handleader Dora Wallus. Now tell me your story perhaps starting with what has brought you to the city."

Quote from che_ja_pa >>

"Miss Wilma, Master Canna, we are of the city watch, this is Guilliame and I am Handleader Dora Wallus. Now tell me your story perhaps starting with what has brought you to the city."

[OOC: Paul, I am waiting for Andrew's response before I continue this conversation, but don't forget to roll for experience for your Insight check, I am trying to give it away.]

Roll for experience 14

Quote from che_ja_pa >>

Roll for experience 6

[OOC: The above roll should have had a +2 bonus because Dora has proficiency in the Insight skill. A roll of 8 is actually a success and so Dora has earned some experience, which I have added to her character sheet. Still a long way to go, but every bit counts. I will also give out experience points later for play overall, but gaining experience through failed skill checks is an additional way to gain experience.]