Heath's wine was gone for a while, when he had finally reached the gates of Paron. Five canteens of wine and a small gold pouch was his payment for escorting a wine merchant to his previous destination. Heath had agreed to escort another one of the wine merchant's friends, but took the wrong turn along the way to him, so now that plan was off. Now all he could hope for was to find some work in Paron.
Heath had visited the town a couple of times but never came in through this road. It was by no means comparable to the capital, Sharu, but a pleasant settlement, a crossroad of sorts. At least several roads from cities and towns around crossed here. Many people stopped here to replenish their supplies or spend a cozy, warm night. 
The guardsmen did not spare a second glance as Heath went through the gate - for them he was yet another traveller seeking shelter as storm clouds were brewing and a rain would be upon the city come night, no doubt. The man turned his horse for a bigger street with white stone pavement. Heath knew that people called it the "Emperor's Way", as the street would eventually lead to the Large Gate which starts the road to the capital. After walking his horse along the Emperor's Way for some time, he eventually found the inn he was looking for. The Lion's Tooth it was called. One of the, if not the, most expensive inns in the town, but every wealthier traveller would spend their night there. 
Heath left his horse in a stable nearby, where he got a small paper indicating that the horse was his and went inside the inn. This inn actually had its own wardens, one of them guarding the doors, not letting in common drunks and folk that their eye saw unfit to pay for a night here. Three days of road-drinking did not make Heath look a fitting candidate, so he already had his coin pouch in hand and waved it as he entered. The man probably barely fitted in their eyes as the guards let him pass after exchanging a couple of glances. Heath then went to a free table and sat, ordered a beer, food and a room for two nights. That cost him the whole coin pouch; a sad end to his savings, but Heath’s best shot at finding a well-paying job in Paron. The man then tried to listen to people talking around him, hoping to overhear something useful and hopefully find a way to earn some good coin from these wealthy travellers.