As planned, the group set out to investigate early the next morning. The first person they decided to take a chance with was Jaxyn, the man who had given them a room at the inn. They approached the counter and Aquila smiled at the young man.
"Hey there. I was just wondering if you might know of some gossip about Grumor and their superiors. I'm sure you get people traveling through the inn all the time talking about that type of stuff."
Jaxyn frowned. "Not much. We don't get much business from people who would have any connection with Grumor's high class. If you were to get some scoop on that, it would be more likely found at one of the higher-class inns. Though, I'm sure the workers there would be a lot more tight-lipped. Why are you so curious anyways?"
Aquila shrugged. "We're just some traveling merchants. When we stop somewhere for a while, we find it interesting to learn about what's going on in the kingdom."
Jaxyn shrugged. "Well, like I said, very rarely would we get anyone in here who would have knowledge of that stuff. Very few lower-class citizens will know a cent about that."
Aquila sighed. "Aw well. Thanks for the help anyways."
He nodded, a confused look still on his face. The group started to head out the door, going into the small village.
"So obviously we can't just ask any old citizen it seems. I can't believe they wouldn't even know whether their own king is returning," Jesika said.
Rowan crossed his arms as they walked the streets. "So, are we really going to try and ask higher classmen? They're more likely to turn us in," Rowan said.
Darryn shrugged. "I don't see that we have any other option," he replied.
***
"Hey Sakura! You heading to the smith?" Jaxyn called out as Sakura was heading out the door of the inn.
She stopped, turning on her heel and striding back over to him. "Yeah. Why?"
Jaxyn leaned over the counter, his eyes sparking. "We got an interesting group of four checking in last night to rent a room for a while. They said this morning that they were traveling merchants. For some reason, they were asking about the higher classmen. Said they just wanted some insight on the kingdom. Weird, huh? Haven't got anyone that interesting in a long while."
Sakura grinned. So, the group only got more and more interesting. "Very intriguing indeed. You said they rented a room? I assume they'll be coming back tonight?"
Jaxyn nodded. "They said they would be here around a week or so."
Sakura smiled, tilting her head. "Well, thank you. That IS very interesting."
He smiled back as Sakura turned to leave.
Her grin grew as she walked out and saw the four leaving the inn. "Very interesting indeed," she mused quietly.
***
The four traveled to Daemarrel, the main part of Grumor. There were many fancy, expensive inns in the large village. They chose the smallest of them, hoping they might be a little more forthcoming with information due to their smaller size.
They walked up to the counter where a woman stood, dressed to the nines, with her brown hair twisted up into a tight chignon.
Aquila smiled at the woman. "Hey there. My friends and I are traveling merchants stopping here for a while. We were wondering if with your experience in such a successful inn, if you've heard any interesting rumors or news about the higher class or better yet, the royal family." Aquila was quickly met by a frown from the woman.
