Narlissa Quickhands, half-elf and master thief, awoke to find the tavern bed empty. She rolled over and glanced around, sighing when it became obvious that Jost had already left.
It did not overly surprise her as adventurers like him often tended to make early starts and not stay in one place for too long. Still, she was disappointed. Not because she'd had any intention of travelling with him once he left the village, but because she had woken up horny like she always did and it meant that she would not get to fuck him as a great way to start the day.
She climbed from the bed and washed herself before getting dressed. Deciding against heading through the common room of the tavern where she might be seen she instead collected her things and exited nimbly through the window. Thanks to her elven heritage she was very agile and light of foot and nobody noticed her as she deftly made her way down onto the street even though it was broad daylight.
The first thing she did was buy some food, then when she was finished eating she walked casually back towards the tavern. She needed to scope it out.
Disappearing into an alleyway opposite the inn she slipped out of sight and then quickly climbed the nearest building. It was slightly taller than the others around it so she knew it would be the perfect vantage point. She was still far enough south that the buildings had flat roofs and soon she found herself on top of the building.
She crept to the side so that she could clearly see the inn and started watching. She knew she was well-concealed because she had done this a hundred times before. No one would spot her unless they were actively looking.
She scanned the outside of the inn and realised that the easiest way to make entry to the merchant's room would be to climb onto the flat roof and then drop down onto the balcony. The guards were not watching the roof and had no one stationed up there. Narlissa supposed they were not actually expecting any trouble in this small village in the middle of nowhere.
Hours passed and although most people would have found the task very boring Narlissa was of singular focus. She had not become a skilled thief by ignoring the groundwork and that meant thoroughly learning about the terrain and all the things that might go wrong with a heist. She made a note of every single detail in case it was important, for you see Narlissa was very clever. She just chose to focus that cleverness on her job rather than academically.
Slowly the day passed and afternoon came. Still she watched. She saw no sign that the merchant was preparing to leave. That was good. She needed him to spend the night at the tavern so that she could make her move. A few guards stood around his carriage in the tavern's courtyard, but most were inside. She would have to sneak in without alerting them of her presence.
Once or twice she saw the elven mage that she had seen before and that was of more concern to her than the guards. She wondered again how this merchant could have afforded his talents. He was rich, but she didn't think he was rich enough for that.
Still, the presence of the mage made her very nervous. He evidently possessed considerable power. Had it not been for her desire to get revenge on the merchant she probably would have ignored him as a target because of the risk of having to confront the mage. As it was, however, she would just have to trust her talents. And thankfully, she did. She knew she was one of the best.
Then she noticed something. A cloaked figure stopped in front of the tavern and watched it for a while before moving on. That was suspicious enough but ten minutes later they returned and did it again. Then they left but once again returned. Narlissa got the distinct impression they were scoping the place out. She could recognise another thief a mile away.
The guards were so oblivious that they did not notice the cloaked figure but Narlissa was still put on edge. It was not so much the fear that this other thief would get the spoils before her but more that if they were seen it would alert the merchant and he would be particularly vigilant tonight, meaning she could not make a move of her own.
As the afternoon went on the figure came and went a few more times. Whilst Narlissa knew this other thief would not be stupid enough to make a move during daylight it did mean Narlissa was going to have to get started earlier than she was intending to when night fell.
Suddenly there was a sound and Narlissa realised with surprise that it was the trapdoor to the building below being opened. She whirled around as it opened then dived behind a tall amphora full of wine in the corner of the roof, hiding in the long evening shadows. A figure climbed up onto the roof then laid out a rug on the floor and shut the trapdoor behind them. They sat down on the rug, pulled out some food and started to eat.
Narlissa realised with alarm that they weren't going to move. Clearly they were here for a while, probably to have their evening meal whilst watching the sun set. She had to admit it was a nice place to do so.
But now she was stuck here until they left. Whilst she was well-concealed in her current hiding place she could not leave it without being seen. If this person saw her and thought she was trying to rob them then they might alert the village watch, and that would be a disaster for her plans.
At the same time, she couldn't see the inn from where she was. She needed to find somewhere else so she could keep watching the tavern, but needed to stay put in case she was seen. She was in a tight spot.
However, Narlissa's frantic thoughts paused when she saw the figure take off their cloak. It was a man and she realised with a throb in her pussy that he was actually very handsome, with a shaved head and green eyes. He was probably about 5'11 and likely in his early-twenties. He had a neat beard that contrasted with his shaved head and he was quite muscular without being too broad.
His size looked like it came from careful exercise rather than his work and she realised from his loose white clothing that he was probably a monk. It suddenly dawned on her that the reason this building was taller than those around it was because it wasn't a private house at all - it was a dormitory for the monks of the local temple!
However, the man was not quick about eating. Narlissa grew more anxious and eventually realised that would have to leave. She could not afford to ignore the inn for so long. She reached for the magical pendant around her neck and willed it to make her invisible. She just hoped it would last.
Unfortunately things were never that easy for the beautiful half-elf. She had almost made it to the edge of the building when suddenly the monk spun round to face her and gasped.
"Who are you?" he demanded. "You are not meant to be here."
Narlissa paused, slowly turning to face him. She was mere feet away from the edge of the building and knew she could easily escape before the monk could reach her, but then he would alert the local guard about a thief and her plans would be ruined. She would have to talk her way out.
She smiled at the monk and raised her palms to show she wasn't a threat. "I am just passing across your rooftop. I mean no harm."
Narlissa cursed inwardly as soon as she said the words. For you see unfortunately Narlissa was not actually very good at talking her way out of trouble.
"Passing across our rooftop?" the monk said, then laughed pleasantly. "That is a feeble excuse."
Narlissa shrugged. "It's the best I have."
"Do you mean to rob us? My Order doesn't have anything of value."
"No."
"Then you mean to steal from somewhere else."
Narlissa said nothing for a moment. Then she sighed.
"Well, aren't you going to call the guards or something?"
