He arrived late in the evening. He had noticed the smoke, rising high from chimney stacks, some days ago.
The lone adventurer finally tied up his horse outside the town inn. He was weary, his armour was battered and his sword was blunted. He was relieved to have found a human town. Casting back his mind he struggled to remember the last human town he had visited.
He entered the mostly empty Inn.
"bar keep," he started in a gruff voice "an ale and a room with a bath if you are able" He was a quite a large man, standing a little over six feet with the stature of a greek god. He had a quite intimidating presence. His somewhat unkempt beard hid a face that could have been sculpted by the gods themselves.
An older squat man with a grey beard approached with his Ale. "Aye good sir, welcome to Avaluvia. I will have Freya draw you a bath when you're ready."
"Thank you kind sir, the name is Romule" Rumbled the adventurer.
"Ah," mused the old man. "A Safetian name. You are a long way from home."
"Indeed i do come from the great province of Safetaya," Romules tone dripped with sarcasm and just a hint of something the old barkeeper couldn't quite pick up on.
"So Sir Romule....."
Romule held up a hand to stop him mid sentence.
"Ah please old man, I am no sir. Born a peasant and proud."
Scorn, that was what the old barkeep could sense.
"So you herald from the kings land but hold no loyalty to the royals."
"Exactly right. My family suffered at the hands of our bastard king and now, alas, i am the last to bear my family crest." Romule looked somewhat sullen. "But, i interrupted you. Please continue."
He sat at a table alone and drank his ale. His attention was caught by a pretty young woman talking to the barkeep before hurrying upstairs to one of the rooms.
Maybe that was Freya.
"Sir, Freya is tending to your bath as we speak."
"Hmm" he grunted, standing slowly. He really was weary...his last trip had been quite eventful and now he found himself in need of rest.
He headed upstairs and opened the door that he had seen Freya walk through. There she was, stood over a steaming bathtub in the middle of the room.
She was a slender young woman, he guessed around twenty years old. Her brunette hair was kept in a loose bun. She raised her head to look at the stranger who had just walked in.
