[h3]Zerul City, the Platinum Goblet[/h3]
What sparse chatter had occurred in the Platinum Goblet that evening seemed to immediately still when Kaedan entered the tavern, and the disheartened sobbing of those who suffered from their losses grew muted as many eyes turned to him, watching him with distrust and fear. The deigan woman paused her application of an improvised bandage to a little girl's skinned shin, and though she remained kneeling by the child with the strip of velvet in her hands, her eyes were on the newcomer. It was not until the cloaked man approached the tavern keeper that she resumed binding the girl's wound, just as everyone else removed their focus from the stranger.
The tavern keeper's attention had been on Kaedan right from the second he entered, however, and he continued to openly observe the new visitor in his establishment with obvious interest and a little smile on the pale lips that were partway hidden behind an untamed moustache. His eyes followed Kaedan's hand eagerly as it emerged, and then fixated itself on the lone silver coin on his counter. His smirk of anticipation vanished instantly.
He gave Kaedan a quick look-over from top to toe, greedy eyes scanning the man's equipment, which was obviously of nice quality, if not quite as ornamental as that of a knight or paladin, then let out a disgruntled snort.
"Mister, eh, one rodlin aint gonna -"
Behind some ten feet behind or so behind Kaedan, at the moment standing up among the refugee-visitors, the true deigan's head snapped around to send a tavern keeper a glare as fiery as only one of their kind could manage them, and she cleared her throat as she wagged a finger at the proprietor past the newcomer.
Sneering at the woman with a look of annoyance and contempt in his eyes, the tavern keeper turned his attention back to Kaedan with a sigh. "Eh, fine, but I haven't got any rooms left; 'em Nemhimians' gone taken them all. I'll get you some, eh, blankets, though, and, eh, you can sleep wherever you think'd be best." Suddenly his smile returned, and the greed reignited in his eyes. "Of course for another, eh, piece of silver or two, I could [I]make[/I] a room free, eh? Have some of the, eh, rabble sleep down here so you can have a bed, eh?"
The deigan still stared, still standing in the middle of the room, but made no sound of protest this time. She simply appeared to be coolly observing the events that played out before her.