The innkeeper nods at Alton, and Balassar and Celica would see the two disappear off into a back room.

So, for Alton alone:

You are led to a small room off the kitchen that would have struggled to fit Balassar; on the way you pass a half-elf man working at the cooking stove; he looks at you and the innkeeper curiously but says nothing as you go by. Inside the room there's a small table and three stools; the innkeeper motions you to sit, closes the wooden door and sits down himself.

"I have a little more to tell you than what I sent to Lord Teratt. You are acting on his behalf, is that right?" He suddenly looks wary. "Do you mind?" He leans over and seems to want to touch your face before he continues.

Balassar nods at Celica "I can talk to the dwarf, seems he was interested in the story Alton told anyways. You wanna hit up the group to our right that looks like they are up to no good." he says lifting his mug to his lips to hide the words being said from observing eyes.

Alton hops up to sit on one of the stools, "That's right. Lord Teratt sent us, and then we ran into a village that had a house set on fire by a brigand group." He nods and lightly laughs, "Only if you promise not to steal my charming good looks." 

Alton, the innkeeper nods, and then proceeds to touch around your face, gently, but seemingly looking for something. Satisfied at not finding it, he relaxes and leans back against the wall behind his stool. "You're not an illusion, or wearing an illusion. That's good. You might still be one of them. That's a scary thought, I suppose. But I don't think so."

He pauses for a moment, gathering his thoughts. "Lord Teratt's man - a servant it was - passed through once, several years ago. He mentioned his master was looking for someone with a particular scar. Described it in great detail. Said it was a dangerous man and I should send word if I ever saw it. I have friends who run the inns in some of the nearby towns and I know they heard the same story. But as I say, that was years ago."

"There is a group of... brigands, you said? A fitting enough word. Brigands that have the run of the town. In some ways, they control it, though I don't think it actually interests them. They cause more trouble out in the countryside, but not enough to attract attention from Berleben or Zadash. Sometimes they come in to town, they spend a lot of money. A few folks in town have dealings with them, but like I say, they mostly spend money and don't break the law in town, so..." he trails off and shrugs.

"We have a large room upstairs that people rent out sometimes. For meetings, or functions, or parties. A group of fellows rented it one night for a big meeting and got roaring drunk. The whole staff was busy serving food and ale and wine - I had to hire in some people to cover the rest of the customers while they kept us busy. The point is, there was this one man, black hair, thick beard, passed out cold, face on the table. I was handing round the ale tankards and he just.. shimmered, and the beard vanished, and there was this scar, just as Teratt's man described it, right there on his face. It took all I had not to stare at it, but I moved away, and by the time I looked back his buddies were helping him over to a corner and making very sure his face couldn't be seen."

"So, that's pretty much what happened. I waited a few days to see if anything happened. Then I wrote a letter, passed it to a merchant I've known for a long time and told him to take it to Zadash and deliver it."

Alton nods along as the innkeeper talks, "I see, I see. Is this group still around in town, or have they moved on? It's going to be hard to track someone down that can change their face though."

"They are not around often. They are not based in the town, and I don't know where they can be found, I'm afraid. You could wait here; I would recognise a few of their members, but they come infrequently. Or you might find out who sells goods to them, and track that. I'm afraid I don't know what else to suggest."

"Sounds good," Celica says. She stands up and heads over to the gambling humans with an unassuming smile. "Hey there, folks! Care to give me a shot at this game? What's the buy-in?"

Balassar just stands up and walks over to the dwarf "Seems my lot has separated to get to know people in the town better. Mind if I drink with you all for a bit?"

Celica, a middle-aged man with a very old scar across the whole length of his face scowls, and seems about to say no when one of his fellows, younger with long brown hair says: "Two golds. You know how to play?"

(Celicia would know the basic rules of playing dice, but can make a straight INT check to see if she understands if there is any particular variant in what these fellows are doing.)

Balassar, a dwarf with gold hoop earrings and a friendly-looking face looks you up and down. "You buying?"

11

Alton rubs his chin and sighs, "So, they could be here tomorrow, or in a few weeks, or a few months. This just keeps getting harder and harder." He perks up with a smile, "But where is the fun and glamorous tale if it was easy." He hops down from the stool and gives a small bow, "Thank you for the information, even if it seems small to you it gives us more than what we had before. If there isn't anything else, I should get back to my friends before they get into any trouble. Maybe even play an encore piece."

Balassar just nods "Of course, would be rude not to."

Celica:

You feel confident you know the game they're playing; it's not common but you've played a few games in Zadash and believe it's popular among former military. Some of these fellows look like they might be capable fighters, though it's hard to know if they were in the Righteous Brand just from looking.

Do you join the game?

Alton:

The innkeeper nods. "If I think of anything, I'll let you know." And you exit the back room to find Balassar and Celica busy at the two others tables, talking with the inn's patrons. The crowd notices your return and seems up for another song or two, though it's getting a bit late and a few of the patrons are starting to make motions towards leaving.

Balassar:

You buy a round of ale for yourself and the trio of dwarves (that's 8 coppers), and sit with them.

"You Crownsguard? Military perhaps? You have the look of it." one of the dwarves asks. "My kids are both Righteous Brand; Romm joined three years ago, and Kirsi signed up as soon as the war began, the Platinum Dragon watch over and protect them both."

Celica takes a seat and buys in. “Oh I know how to play, but it’s been a while. I’m a little rusty. Go easy on me, okay?” She asks, batting her eyelashes.

Alton picks up his lute again and after taking a swig from his tankard says, “Any requests from the audience for these last two songs?” 

Balassar nods "I was military, now just a smith and mercenary. How about you? Did the kids follow in your footsteps?"

Celica:

"Oh, sure we will", one of the men says with a grin. 

Make, I guess, a Deception check. If your roll is 15 or higher, you succeed.

Then make an INT check as you play the game. The dice are random - there's no skill in rolling them, but there are decisions to be made based on what to keep and what to re-roll. If you succeeded on the Deception check above you can roll this INT check with advantage.

As the game progresses, you can also ask questions of the men, or choose a topic of conversation.

Alton:

There are a few shouts from the crowd. "Zadash Nights!"  "A Pirate's Fancy!"  ""Darrington's Call!" " All popular songs that you know well.